Dissension within the Ranks
by aquarius12285
Summary: When it is revealed that Syd and Z are both interested in Sky, it sparks a chain reaction that puts the unity of the team in jeopardy.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers.

**Dissension within the Ranks**

It was late in the evening at the S.P.D. Academy, and despite the lights being turned off, the yellow and pink rangers were chatting away.

"So, do you, you know, like anybody here?" Syd asked.

"Of course I do. I like practically everybody," Z replied.

"No, no, no. That's not what I meant!" Syd responded.

"Well, then what did you mean?" Z asked.

"Do you like, you know, could you see yourself dating anybody here?" Syd answered.

"Oh, so **that's** what you meant," Z said.

"Yeah, **that** is what I meant!" Syd replied. "Now answer my question!"

"What difference does it make if I do?" Z replied.

"So you **do** like someone here!" Syd responded.

"I never said that!" Z shouted.

"Yeah you did, just not in those exact words," Syd said.

"Whatever," Z said.

"So, who is it?" Syd asked.

"That's none of your business! Good night Syd," Z replied.

"Hey, not fair! We're not finished with this conversation yet!" Syd shouted.

"Wanna bet?" Z replied.

"Just tell me who you're interested in," Syd said.

"I don't think so princess," Z responded.

"Fine if you won't tell me, then I'll guess," Syd replied.

"Go right ahead," Z answered.

"Jack?" Syd asked.

"What?" Z asked.

"Is that a 'yes'?" Syd asked.

"No way, Jack's practically my brother!" Z answered.

"Bridge?" Syd asked.

"Wait a sec. Who said the person I like is on our team?" Z replied.

"Quit avoiding my questions!" Syd whined.

"If you didn't ask so many, I wouldn't have any to avoid!" Z responded.

"You never answered my question!" Syd complained.

"You never answered mine either!" Z replied.

"Wait, what was your question again?" Syd asked.

"Who ever said the person I like is on our team?" Z repeated.

"Nobody, but I was just guessing," Syd replied.

"Oh," Z answered.

"Well, is it Bridge?" Syd asked.

"What about you?" Z asked ignoring the question.

"What about me?" Syd asked.

"Do **you** like anybody on our squad?" Z asked.

"Not fair! I asked you first!" Syd whined.

"Sometimes you are so childish!" Z said.

"Hey, that wasn't very nice!" Syd complained.

"It's the truth," Z replied.

"Do you like Bridge?" Syd asked.

"Are you ever going to go to sleep?" Z asked.

"Once I get an answer," Syd replied.

"Well, in that case, be prepared to stay up all night, because you're not getting one!" Z said.

"Oh my gosh, you like Bridge!" Syd exclaimed.

"I never said that!" Z replied.

"You didn't have to. Your avoiding the question said it for you," Syd said.

"Let's get one thing straight here princess. My avoiding a question in no way shape or form translates into a 'yes' got it?" Z asked.

"Well, if it's not Bridge then…oh my gosh, is it Sky?" Syd asked.

"For the last time good night Syd," Z replied.

"Is it?" Syd asked.

"Ok if I tell you, it's only fair that you tell me who you're interested in," Z said.

"Fine," Syd replied.

"Then afterwards you'll go to sleep right?" Z asked.

"Uh huh," Syd answered.

"Fine, it's Sky," Z said.

"It is?" Syd asked.

"Yes, it is," Z asked.

"You're not just saying that to get me to shut up are you?" Syd asked.

"No," Z replied.

"Oh," Syd responded.

"Now that I told you who I like, it's your turn to tell me who you like," Z said.

"But you and Sky are so different," Syd said.

"Hello, I said it's your turn to tell me who you like," Z said.

"Oh, uh…Jack. I like Jack," Syd replied.

"Really?" Z asked.

"Yeah…really," Syd responded.

"I don't believe you," Z said.

"Why not?" Syd asked.

"Because you hesitated," Z replied.

"So?" Syd asked.

"That means you're lying," Z added.

"No it doesn't," Syd said.

"Whatever you say. I still don't believe you," Z said.

"What's wrong with Jack?" Syd asked.

"Nothing's wrong with Jack," Z replied.

"Then why don't you believe that I like him?" Syd asked.

"Because you don't," Z responded.

"Ok fine, I don't like Jack," Syd said.

"Now we're getting somewhere," Z said.

"Good night Z," Syd said.

"Not so fast princess," Z replied.

"Now what?" Syd asked.

"We made a deal. I tell you who I like and in return, you tell me who you like," Z said.

"I never said I like anyone," Syd said.

"Not in so many words," Z answered.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Syd asked.

"When you agreed that I tell you who I like in return for you telling me who you like, it is implied that you like someone," Z said.

"You're starting to sound like Bridge," Syd said.

"Who's avoiding the question now?" Z asked.

"What question?" Syd asked.

"Who do you like?" Z repeated.

"Look, it doesn't matter!" Syd said.

"Ok. If you won't tell me, then I'll just have to guess," Z replied.

"Go right ahead," Syd said.

"Is he on B-Squad?" Z asked.

"That's not a guess," Syd whined.

"Just answer the question," Z said.

"That's not fair!" Syd complained.

"So you **do** like someone on B-Squad!" Z exclaimed. "Well, we've established it's not Jack, so let's try Bridge," Z said.

"Hey, I never said the guy I like is on B-Squad!" Syd whined.

"Oh yes you did," Z replied.

"When?" Syd asked.

"When you complained about how it wasn't fair," Z answered.

"That didn't mean that the guy I like is on B-Squad," Syd responded.

"It was implied," Z said.

"You just jumped to the wrong conclusion," Syd replied.

"Yes or no? Do you like Bridge?" Z asked.

"Nah, he's not my type," Syd answered finally giving in to the yellow ranger.

"Then that would mean…no, it can't be!" Z said.

"What?" Syd asked.

"You like Sky!" Z exclaimed.

"How did you reach that conclusion?" Syd asked.

"You implied that the guy you like is on B-Squad. We've established that it wasn't Jack or Bridge, so that only leaves Sky," Z said.

"Um…no it doesn't," Syd replied.

"Who else is there?" Z asked.

"Well, there's Cruger…" Syd said.

"You don't like Cruger!" Z exclaimed.

"…and Sam," Syd finished.

"I find it hard to believe that you like Sam," Z said.

"Fine, I like Sky! Are you happy now? I just didn't want to say it because you just told me that you like him and now we have a problem!" Syd shouted.

"Shh, keep it down people **are **trying to sleep here!" Z warned.

"Wait a sec. How is it possible that you like Sky?" Syd asked.

"Me? How is it possible that you like Sky?" Z retorted.

"Hey, I've known Sky a lot longer than you have. We've been through a lot together," Syd said.

"Just because you've known him longer doesn't entitle you to him," Z commented.

"I'm the reason Sky's lightened up!" Syd exclaimed.

"What? Oh puh-lease! You are so full of yourself!" Z replied.

"Oh, and I suppose you think **you** are the reason Sky's lightened up?" Syd asked.

"I didn't say that did I? However, I certainly don't take all the credit for that happening like **some **people!" Z replied.

"Sky is so not your type," Syd said.

"Oh and I suppose a spoiled brat is?" Z asked.

"Take that back!" Syd shouted.

"The truth hurts doesn't it **princess**?" Z asked.

"I doubt that street trash is just what the doctor ordered!" Syd fired back.

"I can't believe you just said that!" Z replied.

"It serves you right for calling me a spoiled brat!" Syd exclaimed.

"You know what you spoiled brat? I hate you! I'm never gonna forgive you either!" Z said. She then ran out the door tears streaming down her cheek. Z ran to Jack's room.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Jack, I'm sorry to wake you, but we need to talk," Z said sobbing.

Jack turned on a lamp on his nightstand. "Z? What's the matter?" Jack said.

Z burst into tears. Jack gathered Z in his arms and rubbed her shoulders.

"Shh. It's alright. You can tell me anything Z," Jack said.

"Syd and I got in a fight," Z said.

"A fight?" Jack asked. "What about?"

"Sky," Z answered.

"Huh?" Jack asked confusingly.

"We both said that we were interested in Sky…" Z started to say.

"Sky? What could you possibly see in him?" Jack shouted.

"Why are you getting so upset?" Z asked with a hint of fear starting to show in her eyes.

"I don't believe this! After all that we've been through. God Z, don't you know how I feel about you?" Jack asked.

"I'm sorry Jack, but I don't have those kind of feelings toward you. You're practically like my brother," Z said.

"Get out of my room," Jack said.

"What?" Z asked.

"Get out now!" Jack yelled.

Z burst into tears once again. She left Jack's room sobbing.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Great, now who do I go to?" Z thought to herself. Before Z realized what she was doing, she found herself in the room that Sky and Bridge had shared.

"Who's there?" Sky asked seeing a shadow of a figure standing in the doorway.

"It's me Z," Z answered.

"Are you crying?" Bridge asked. Bridge turned on a lamp on his nightstand since it was pretty dark in the room.

"Yes," Z responded.

"Why? What happened?" Sky asked.

Z sat on the foot of Sky's bed. "Syd and I got into a fight. Then I went to Jack for comfort, but he ended up yelling at me," Z replied bursting into tears again.

"There, there Z, it's ok," Bridge said reassuringly.

"No it's not Bridge," Z answered.

"I'm gonna give Jack a piece of my mind!" Sky said.

As Sky got out of bed, he felt a hand hold him back. He looked and saw it was Z's.

"No Sky, it'll only make things worse," Z said.

"Do you want to tell us what happened?" Bridge asked.

"What's there left to tell?" Z replied.

"What did you and Syd get into a fight about, and what exactly did Jack say to you?" Bridge answered.

"Oh my God! I can't believe this!" Syd said appearing in the doorway.

"Syd? What are you doing here?" Sky asked.

"I came here because I needed to talk to someone about the fight that street trash and I had," Syd replied.

"Syd, that was a little uncalled for don't you think?" Bridge asked.

"Hey, she called me a spoiled brat!" Syd exclaimed.

"That's because you are one!" Z shouted.

"That's enough! Stop it!" Sky exclaimed. "I want the two of you to apologize to each other," Sky ordered.

"There's no way I'm apologizing to her!" Z replied.

"I'm not apologizing to her either!" Syd shouted.

Jack appeared in the doorway. "Hey Z, look I'm sorry for yelling at you," Jack said.

"Leave me alone Jack!" Z replied.

Jack looked over at Sky. "You know, this is all your fault!" Jack said pointing at Sky.

"Me? How is this my fault?" Sky asked.

"Yeah. I got rejected by Z because I found out that both her and Syd are interested in you!" Jack said.

"You weren't supposed to tell him that!" Syd and Z said before storming out of the room.

"Whoa, what just happened?" Bridge asked after Syd and Z had left.

"Thanks for screwing up my relationship with Z blue boy!" Jack yelled sarcastically before heading back to his room.

"I'm just as confused as you are," Sky said to Bridge.

XXXXXXXXXX


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers.

**Dissension within the Ranks**

Chapter 2

The next morning, the five core rangers were eating breakfast in complete silence. The silence was beginning to get uncomfortable for Bridge, so he decided he'd be the first one to break it.

"Mmm. This toast sure is good. Anybody want some? It's buttery," Bridge said wiggling his fingers when he said the word 'buttery'.

He didn't receive an answer from the other rangers, just glares.

"So anyways, I had this dream last night. I was running away from something. I'm not quite sure what though because I didn't really get a good look. Perhaps I wasn't running away from something but rather towards something although I couldn't really tell because it was too dark for me to see anything. The next thing I knew, I was falling. I kept falling and falling and falling. I looked below me to see if I could see how much further I had left to fall, but I couldn't see anything because you know how I said it was so dark and everything. But yeah that sure was a strange dream. Do you have any idea what it could mean?" Bridge asked.

Once again he received no answers. As a matter of fact, it looked like the other rangers tuned out long before he even finished his story. To Bridge's surprise, Jack spoke up.

"Ok, this can't wait any longer! Sky, I need to have a word with you!" Jack exclaimed grabbing Sky's arm and pulling him out of the room.

XXXXXXXXXX

Jack led Sky to his room and closed the door.

"Stay the hell away from Z!" Jack ordered.

"What?" Sky asked.

"Don't make me repeat myself!" Jack warned.

"Geez, what's your problem?" Sky asked.

"Simple, you!" Jack responded.

"Hey look, if this is about last night," Sky started.

"You damn right it's about last night!" Jack snapped.

"I didn't ruin your relationship with Z! If you really want to know who did, why don't you look in the mirror!" Sky fired back.

"What did you just say?" Jack asked angrily.

"What are you deaf? I said…" Sky started to say.

Before Sky could finish, Jack's fist connected with Sky's nose.

"What the hell was that for?" Sky asked checking his nose for blood and discovering that it in fact was bleeding.

"You're not Z's type, so if you know what's good for you, you'll leave her alone!" Jack replied.

"Hold on a sec. Who ever said I was going to come onto her?" Sky asked.

"Because of you, Z won't even talk to me anymore!" Jack shouted.

"I'm not the one who yelled at her!" Sky countered.

"I wouldn't have had to yell at her if she wasn't longing to be with you!" Jack yelled.

"I have no control over who she wants to be with!" Sky explained.

"It's bad enough that you have Z brainwashed. You also have Syd brainwashed!" Jack exclaimed.

"Brainwashed? What are you insane?" Sky replied.

"Oh, so now I'm crazy huh?" Jack asked.

"Whatever. I don't have to put up with this," Sky said turning to leave Jack's room.

"Don't you dare walk away from me when I'm talking to you!" Jack yelled.

Sky ignored Jack and kept on walking. Jack ran up to him, spun him around and landed a punch on the bridge of Sky's nose making it bleed even worse. Jack then punched Sky in the gut doubling him over and dropping him to his knees. Jack pulled his right leg back and connected with a kick to Sky's left temple knocking him unconscious.

"Damn, I've waited a long time to do that!" Jack exclaimed staring at the unconscious blue ranger lying on the ground face down in front of him.

XXXXXXXXXX

Meanwhile, the other three rangers were left sitting in the cafeteria in silence.

"I wonder what that was about?" Bridge asked referring to Jack dragging Sky out of the cafeteria.

Syd and Z remained silent.

"Ok, does anyone want to tell me what exactly happened last night?" Bridge asked.

"I'll tell you what happened," Z began. "The spoiled brat over there asked me if I was interested in dating anyone at the Academy, so I gave her an honest answer after she wouldn't quit yapping. Then she has the nerve to call me street trash!"

"That's because street trash provoked me by calling me a spoiled brat!" Syd exclaimed.

"You just couldn't handle the thought of you having any competition," Z remarked.

"Oh please. Give me a break. Like Sky would stoop so low to date street trash like you!" Syd shouted.

"Syd, Z, stop it! Let's discuss this calmly," Bridge said trying to be the mediator.

"Yeah, well Sky would go bald after losing his hair putting up with a spoiled brat like you!" Z yelled.

Jack had reentered the room after standing in the doorway unnoticed listening to the conversation or rather argument.

"Oh, so I suppose if Z is street trash, then I am too?" Jack bitterly asked Syd.

"I didn't say that did I?" Syd replied.

"You didn't have to! That's low Syd especially for you," Jack commented.

"I can't believe this! You're defending me now? Ha! Nice try Jack but buttering me up isn't going to get you my forgiveness!" Z exclaimed.

"By the way Jack, where's Sky?" Bridge asked noticing that Sky didn't enter the room with Jack.

"Oh, Commander Cruger wanted to talk to him about something," Jack lied.

"Oh ok," Bridge replied.

XXXXXXXXXX

Cruger was walking around the Academy when he passed by Jack's room. Something in Jack's room caught his eye.

"Sky? Oh my God! What happened to you?" Cruger asked running to Sky's side.

Cruger didn't get a response. Cruger rolled Sky over on his back and that's when he saw the bloody nose and what looked to be a bruise forming on the left side of Sky's head.

"Who could've done this to you?" Cruger asked wondering if perhaps an intruder had infiltrated the Academy.

Realization just dawned on Cruger. It was rather obvious. Here Sky was unconscious with a bloody nose and a bruised head in Jack's room. It had to be Jack. Letting out a growl, Cruger set out to find the red ranger.

XXXXXXXXXX

It had been nonstop bickering between Syd, Jack, and Z for the last several minutes and it was starting to give Bridge a serious headache. He finally decided that enough was enough and left them to bicker as he headed to his room. On his way, he saw Cruger walking fiercely. "Man, he looks pissed!" Bridge thought to himself.

On the way to his room, he passed Jack's room when he saw someone familiar lying on the floor.

"Sky? What the hell happened to you?" Bridge asked seeing his unconscious best friend and roommate. Bridge checked to make sure that Sky wasn't dead or anything. Then dragged Sky down to the infirmary.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back in the cafeteria, Cruger approached the cafeteria picking up on this part of the argument between Z, Syd, and Jack.

"I told you Jack, I called Z 'street trash' and not you! How could you think that I would call you such a thing?" Syd shouted.

"One word. Association!" Jack retorted.

"Huh?" Syd asked confused.

"It's simple you spoiled brat. Jack and I used to play the role of Robin Hood remember? So calling me 'street trash' is calling him 'street trash' as well!" Z exclaimed.

"Ahem!" Cruger cleared his throat.

"Cruger? Uh…how much of that did you hear?" Jack asked nervously.

"More than I wanted to," Cruger remarked. "What may I ask is going on here?"

"God, how many times do we have to explain it?" Z said annoyed.

"Nevermind then." Cruger said. "Jack, do you have any idea why Sky is lying in your room unconscious?"

"He's what?" Jack asked pretending that was news to him.

"Is he ok?" Syd asked worriedly.

"Yes, we should probably get him to the infirmary though so Kat can examine him," Cruger said.

With that being said, the four of them headed to Jack's room.

XXXXXXXXXX

Meanwhile in the infirmary, Bridge had finally succeeded in dragging Sky's unconscious body all the way to the infirmary which was an obstacle in its own right considering that Sky was taller and heavier than he was. Bridge had received a bunch of confused looks from cadets that he passed along the way. "God, they must think **I** did this to Sky" Bridge thought to himself.

"Bridge what are you-Oh my God! What happened?" Kat shouted seeing Sky's unconscious body.

Bridge was breathing heavily as sweat was pouring down his face. "Never again, ever!" Bridge thought to himself.

"Hello, Bridge? Did you hear what I said?" Kat asked waving her hand in front of Bridge's face.

"Oh, sorry Kat. No, could you repeat that?" Bridge answered.

Kat growled. "I said what happened?"

"How am I supposed to know? I found him like this while I was on my way to our room," Bridge replied.

"Where did you find him exactly?" Kat asked.

"Jack's room," Bridge answered.

XXXXXXXXXX

Cruger led Jack, Z, and Syd to Jack's room.

"See? Here's your proof. There's Sky lying on the…"Cruger said stopping when he noticed that Sky wasn't there anymore.

Jack, Z, and Syd burst out laughing.

"Good one commander!" Jack snickered.

"Yeah, you really had us fooled there for a second!" Syd added.

"Yet you came across as so serious," Z commented.

"What? He was here when I left the room!" Cruger remarked.

"Sure he was DC, sure he was," Jack said sarcastically.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back at the infirmary, Kat had finished running some tests on Sky.

"Everything appears to be fine," Kat said to Bridge.

"Whew, what a relief!" Bridge remarked.

Just then, Sky began to stir.

"Where am I?" Sky asked.

"You're in the infirmary," Kat told Sky.

"What happened?" Sky asked.

"We were hoping you could tell us," Kat answered.

"I don't really remember," Sky answered.

"Oh no," Kat remarked.

"What?" Bridge asked.

"I think he has a concussion!" Kat replied.

"You think?" Bridge commented.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back in Jack's room, Jack, Z, and Syd were giving Cruger a hard time about his story of Sky supposedly being unconscious in Jack's bedroom when clearly there was nobody there.

"Maybe he's in the infirmary," Cruger said.

"Right, first he's unconscious on the floor of Jack's bedroom, and now he's in the infirmary. Whatever you say Commander," Syd remarked.

Just then they heard someone scurrying down the hallways towards them. It was Boom

"Sir, I just received word that some cadets have seen Bridge dragging an unconscious Sky down the hallways," Boom stated.

"Bridge?" Syd asked not wanting to believe him.

"When I get my hands on him, I'm gonna wring his neck!" Z remarked before storming off to find Bridge though admittedly, she had no idea where he was.

Jack silently breathed a sigh of relief seeing how the blame has shifted off of him and onto Bridge.

"Do you know where Sky or Bridge are now?" Cruger asked.

"In the infirmary I think sir," was Boom's answer.

"Infirmary? Wait a second. Why would Bridge be in the infirmary with Sky unless…oh my God! What did you do to them Jack?" Syd said punching Jack in the shoulder.

"Ow! What was that for? I didn't do anything!" Jack answered.

XXXXXXXXXX

Z made her way to the room that Sky and Bridge shared hoping to find Bridge there. To her dismay, she found the room empty.

"So, little green boy thought he could pull a fast one on us did he?" Z thought to herself. She left Bridge's room and headed to the recreation room.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back in the infirmary, Kat was questioning Sky trying to see what he did remember about what happened.

"So you're telling me that you don't remember anything?" Kat asked.

"Yeah, I don't remember anything," Sky answered.

Just then, Cruger, Boom, Jack, and Syd entered the infirmary.

"Cadet Carson, what exactly were you doing dragging an unconscious Sky down the hallways?" Cruger asked.

"I was taking him to the infirmary so Kat could run some tests," Bridge answered.

"Word's going around that you are the one who knocked him unconscious," Jack said to Bridge smirking.

"What? Me? That's absurd! When I found him in Jack's room, he was already unconscious!" Bridge retorted.

"So it **was **you!" Syd said turning to face Jack.

"Me? No way!" Jack answered nervously.

"It makes sense. Sky was found unconscious in Jack's room. The pieces seem to fit that Jack was the one who knocked Sky unconscious," Bridge concluded.

"But I didn't know Sky was unconscious until Cruger told me, so maybe it was Cruger," Jack remarked resorting to anything to shift the blame off of him.

"Why would I knock one of my own cadets unconscious?" Cruger asked in shock about what Jack seemed to be insinuating.

"Well, you do have quite a temper," Syd responded. Bridge, Boom, Kat, and Jack nodded their heads at that.

"Uh…hello? Why are you guys talking about me like I'm not in the room or something?" Sky asked.

"You're awake?" Cruger asked. "When did that happen?"

"More like I thought I knocked you out," Jack whispered to Syd.

"I heard that!" Cruger yelled.

Syd giggled.

"I've been awake since before the four of you entered the infirmary," Sky answered.

XXXXXXXXXX

Z entered the recreation room and saw no sign of Bridge. She was getting extremely annoyed with this cat and mouse game so she asked another cadet who was in the room.

"Do you know where Bridge is?" Z asked.

"Yeah, word's going around that he was dragging an unconscious Sky down the hallways," the cadet answered.

"Ha! I knew it was Bridge!" Z exclaimed. "Do you have any idea where Bridge is now?"

"I think in the infirmary," the cadet replied.

"But why would he…oh I get it. I see the games you're playing green boy. Go to the infirmary and make people believe that you are concerned for him when in actuality you're the one who knocked him unconscious," Z thought to herself.

"Thank you cadet," Z said. She made her way to the infirmary.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back at the infirmary, Bridge was still trying to figure out who was responsible for knocking Sky unconscious while subconsciously wondering why he was being blamed for it.

"Let's review the facts. Fact: Sky was found unconscious in Jack's room. Speculation: Jack did it. Fact: Cruger found Sky unconscious in Jack's room and told Jack, Z, and Syd. Speculation: Cruger did it. Fact: I dragged an unconscious Sky down to the infirmary. Speculation: I repeat **speculation** is I did it," Bridge concluded.

"Well, a lot of people would have a motive to knock Sky unconscious," Jack commented.

That received laughs from Kat and Boom and glares from Sky and Syd.

Just then, Z entered the infirmary.

"Come here you little twerp!" Z said as she made her way over to Bridge.

"Hey, what the heck? What are you doing Z?" Bridge asked.

"I know it was you who knocked Sky unconscious," Z replied.

"No it wasn't," Bridge responded.

Z chased Bridge out of the infirmary.

"Look guys, does it matter who did it? I'm awake now. It's no big deal!" Sky commented.

Jack breathed another sigh of relief glad that Sky didn't remember it was he who knocked him unconscious.

"Yeah, Sky's right. Sky's awake now and that's all that matters," Jack said.

"Now let's find Z and Bridge before she knocks **him** unconscious," Cruger said.

XXXXXXXXXX

Bridge had retreated to his room, but Z had found him there and had a hold of Bridge's ear pulling on it.

"Ow Z! That hurts!" Bridge whined.

"Ok green boy, why did you do it?" Z asked twisting his ear.

"I told you. It wasn't me!" Bridge screamed.

"Then how come cadets saw you dragging Sky through the hallways?" Z asked.

"Because I wanted to get him to the infirmary because I found him unconscious," Bridge answered.

"Enough Z!" Cruger ordered.

Z reluctantly let go of Bridge's ear.

XXXXXXXXXX

Kat and Sky had stayed in the infirmary.

"So, I **am** going to be ok aren't I?" Sky asked.

"Yes, you will. It seems that the only memory you've lost is the memory of the incident," Kat responded.

"I'm glad," Sky commented.

"You should be careful though from now on Sky," Kat said.

"Why?" Sky asked.

"Because whomever attacked you may do so again," Kat explained.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back in Bridge's room, Bridge dawned a smirk on his face.

"You know Z, some people would consider your chasing after me and yanking on my ear flirting," Bridge said wagging his eyebrows.

"Eww. Don't push your luck green boy!" Z said disgustingly.

"They're so cute together," Syd commented.

"I heard that!" Z shouted.

"Come on Bridge, Cruger, Boom, let's let the two girls have their little spat," Jack said.

"But it's my room," Bridge complained.

They left the room leaving Syd and Z alone.

"Oh that was real cute Syd," Z remarked sarcastically.

"What?" Syd asked.

"You wish I would go after Bridge so that way you can have Sky all to yourself," Z answered.

"Oh please, like he's going to pick you!" Syd remarked.

"Oh, and you know what Syd? Some people would call the little whispering and giggling between you and Jack flirting as well," Z stated.

"Me and Jack? No way! We're just friends!" Syd replied.

"I bet you he doesn't think so!" Z responded.

"What?" Syd asked.

"I saw the way he looks at you. After I turned him down, he realized he couldn't have the best, so he decided to settle for you," Z stated.

Syd slapped Z across the face. "How dare you think that you're better than me!"

"And I just wanted you to know" Z started to say. She slapped Syd across the face. "Jack's not your type!"

"You did not just slap me!" Syd said putting a hand to her cheek.

"You slapped me first!" Z shouted.

"That does it!" Syd said. She tackled Z to the ground. They rolled on the ground pulling each other's hair, slamming each other's head into the floor, kicking, and scratching each other.

XXXXXXXXXX

Jack and Bridge had made their way to Jack's room.

"Hey Bridge, are you alright?" Jack asked.

"Yeah I'm fine," Bridge answered.

"Bridge come here, I want to tell you something," Jack said.

Bridge walked over to where Jack was sitting on the foot of his bed.

"Well, what did you want to tell me?" Bridge asked.

"Bend down. I'll whisper it to you!" Jack replied.

Bridge did as Jack had asked.

"You know what happened to Sky? Well I did it!" Jack said karate chopping Bridge in the back of the neck.

Bridge fell to the ground in a heap.

"I'll tell you the same thing I told Sky" Jack said to the unconscious green ranger "Stay the hell away from Z!"

Jack dragged Bridge's body into his closet and shut the door and left the room with a huge grin on his face.

Note: This is my first fanfic, so please show mercy! I had originally intended for this to be Drama/Action/Adventure, but after typing up a few rough drafts of various ideas I had, I realized that I suck at the Action/Adventure aspect, so I just dropped it. I'll admit. I was disappointed when I discovered that I only have two reviews so far. It sure would be nice if you review my fanfic. At least it lets me know that people are in fact reading it. By the way, this isn't the end of the story. There'll be more chapters. How many? I'm not sure. I guess however many until I run out of ideas.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers.

**Dissension within the Ranks**

Chapter 3

After Jack had left Bridge unconscious in his closet, he passed the room that Bridge and Sky shared. What he saw brought a huge smile to his face. Syd and Z were rolling on the floor pulling each other's hair, slamming each other's head on the floor, kicking and scratching each other. A part of him wanted to break the two of them up because he probably should since he was their leader and all. However, he didn't. The guy in him was too enthralled in the scene before him, a chick fight. "What guy in his right mind would want to stop that?" Jack thought to himself as he stood there and watched them go at it.

"So you think you're better than me, huh?" Syd asked her voice full of anger.

"I don't think, I know!" Z responded.

Syd rolled Z over so she was on top of her. She reached into her pocket and grabbed a lump of iron. "Yeah, well we'll just see about that!" Syd exclaimed.

"I'm not afraid of you!" Z remarked.

"Maybe you should be" Syd started "Fist or iron!" Her iron fist made contact with Z's jaw knocking her unconscious. Syd got off of Z and turned around to see Jack standing in the doorway.

"Impressive," Jack said clapping his hands.

"What do you want?" Syd asked.

"I was just enjoying the view," Jack said smirking.

"Not a word of this to anyone, got it?" Syd warned.

"Why of course not princess," Jack said before leaving the room. After Jack had left the room, Syd did too shortly after so she wouldn't be caught in the room when Z was discovered. She also didn't want to leave at the same time as Jack because if anyone saw that, they might think the two of them were in on something.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back in the infirmary, Kat was speaking to Sky.

"Ok, you're free to leave now, but remember to be careful Sky," Kat stated.

"I will," Sky replied. Sky got off the bed and headed out the door and to his room.

XXXXXXXXXX

In the command center, Cruger was still trying to figure out who knocked Sky unconscious. "I know Sky said it was no big deal, but I can't have a threat to security roaming the hallways," Cruger thought to himself. "I can't believe that Jack accused me of knocking Sky unconscious. Wait a second. That's it! Why didn't I think of this before?" He set out to find a certain ranger of his.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sky made his way to his room, and gasped at the sight before him. Z was lying on the floor face up with blood coming out of the corner of her mouth.

"Oh my God! Z!" Sky shouted. Sky shook Z in an attempt to wake her up, but it was no good. He scooped Z in her arms and rushed her to the infirmary. "Hang on Z! You'll be ok," Sky said.

XXXXXXXXXX

Syd and Jack were in the recreation room. Besides the two of them, the room was vacant.

"Hey have you seen Bridge lately?" Syd asked.

"Not lately, why?" Jack answered.

"I wonder where he could be?" Syd asked.

"I'm sure he's fine," Jack said.

"I don't know Jack. Something's not right here. First Sky was found unconscious, now I have a strange feeling that something has happened to Bridge," Syd stated.

"You mean something like what happened to Z?" Jack asked.

"Will you be quiet? What if someone hears you?" Syd scolded.

"Even if they do" Jack said "you're the last person they'd suspect," Jack finished.

"Well, I still don't want to risk it," Syd commented.

XXXXXXXXXX

Bridge came to his senses in the closet of Jack's room.

"Huh? Where am I?" Bridge asked looking at his surroundings. "Ok now what just happened?" Bridge thought to himself. "Oh yeah, I remember! It was Jack. He did this to me. He knocked me unconscious and threw me in the closet. That's right. Oh yeah, he also told me that he was the one who knocked Sky unconscious. I have to tell Sky!"

He opened the closet door and left Jack's room.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sky arrived in the infirmary carrying Z in his arms.

"Sky, what happened?" Kat asked seeing him holding an unconscious Z.

"I found her lying on the floor of my room face up," Sky replied.

"Do you know what happened?" Kat asked again.

"No," Sky answered.

"Ok, you'll have to excuse me. I'll need to run some tests on her. I have a bad feeling that something's not right around here," Kat commented.

"Let me know when she wakes up," Sky said.

"I will," Kat replied.

Sky left the infirmary.

XXXXXXXXXX

Cruger found just the ranger he was looking for in the recreation room.

"There you are, I've been looking for you," Cruger said.

"Who?" Jack asked.

"You of course," Cruger answered.

"Me?" Jack asked.

"Yes you," Cruger replied.

"Are you sure?" Jack asked.

"Positive," Cruger responded.

"Why might I ask?" Jack questioned.

"Oh, you know why," Cruger answered.

"Time out. What's going on here?" Syd asked.

"Why don't you ask Jack?" Cruger remarked.

Syd turned to Jack. "What is he talking about?"

XXXXXXXXXX

Sky was headed back to his room and found Bridge there sitting on his bed.

"Sky we need to talk," Bridge said pushing a button on a remote closing the door behind him.

"Bridge, what is it?" Sky asked worried at the tone of his best friend's voice.

"I know who attacked you," Bridge stated.

"Who?" Sky asked.

"The same person who attacked me," Bridge answered.

"And that would be…?" Sky questioned.

"Jack," Bridge replied.

"Are you sure?" Sky asked.

"Yes, I'm positive," Bridge responded.

"How do you know this?" Sky inquired.

"He told me just as he was attacking me," Bridge said.

"Oh no," Sky said.

"What is it?" Bridge asked.

"Someone attacked Z too," Sky answered.

"Wait, what? When did this happen?" Bridge asked.

"I don't know. I found her unconscious on our floor a little while ago," Sky explained.

"Do you think it's Jack too?" Bridge asked not really wanting to know.

"It better not have been or else I swear I'll beat him to a pulp!" Sky exclaimed.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back in the recreation room, Syd was waiting for a response from Jack.

"Jack, what is he talking about?" Syd repeated.

"I have no idea," Jack answered.

"Oh yes you do," Cruger said.

"Your guess is about as good as mine Syd," Jack commented.

"I know it was you who attacked Sky," Cruger stated.

A look of horror appeared on Syd's face after hearing that news.

"Whatever DC, you know I still think it was you. Now that I think about it, this whole time you've been trying to set me up. First you accused me since Sky was found in my room. Now, well now you still believe it was me," Jack said.

"That's because it was," Cruger said.

"Where's your proof?" Jack asked.

"This," Cruger said holding up his morpher. "Judgment Mode!"

The light flashed back and forth from innocent to guilty. It eventually came to a stop on guilty.

"Oh please. This is ridiculous. You rigged your morpher so it would come up with the result you wanted it to," Jack stated.

"The morpher does **not** make mistakes!" Cruger shouted. "Speaking of morphers, I'll be taking yours."

"I'm not giving you my morpher!" Jack yelled.

"I'm not asking, I'm demanding!" Cruger replied.

Just then other cadets entered the room and slapped handcuffs on Jack. Cruger snatched Jack's morpher out of its holder as Jack was being led to his cell.

"Oh great" Syd thought to herself "What if Cruger finds out that I attacked Z?"

XXXXXXXXXX

Sky heard a knock on his door.

"Who is it?" Sky asked.

"It's me Kat," a voice said.

Sky pushed a button on a remote and the door opened.

"What is it?" Sky asked.

"I came to tell you that Z's awake and the tests came out fine," Kat answered.

"Come on Bridge, let's go," Sky said to his best friend.

XXXXXXXXXX

Cruger and Syd were left in the recreation room.

"Don't you think taking away his morpher and throwing him in a cell is a little much?" Syd asked.

"He attacked another ranger," Cruger remarked.

"What if they were just sparring or kidding around or something?" Syd questioned.

"Knocking a teammate unconscious is not kidding around!" Cruger yelled.

Kat entered the recreation room.

"I ran some tests on Z, and she's fine," Kat said to Cruger.

"What are you talking about?" Cruger asked.

"You mean you didn't hear?" Kat asked.

"Oh God please don't let Z be awake!" Syd thought to herself. "If she's awake she's going to tell somebody and then I'll suffer the same fate as Jack. No, this can't be happening!"

"Syd?" Kat asked trying to get Syd's attention.

"Huh? What?" Syd replied.

"I said let's go see Z. She's awake now," Kat answered.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back in the infirmary, Bridge and Sky entered to see Z sitting up on the bed.

"Z! Thank goodness you're ok!" Sky said hugging Z.

"I can't believe it! Sky's hugging me! Oh, Syd is gonna be so jealous!" Z thought to herself.

"Z, you are not gonna believe this!" Bridge exclaimed.

"I'm not gonna believe what?" Z asked.

"I found out who attacked Sky! It's the same person who attacked me," Bridge answered.

"Wait, hold the phone. You were attacked?" Z asked.

"Yeah," Bridge said.

"When?" Z asked.

"I don't know after Cruger, Jack, Boom, and I left my room so youand Sydcould work out your little spat," Bridge answered.

"So who attacked you guys?" Z asked.

"Jack," Bridge replied.

"Jack?" Z asked.

"I'm afraid so," Bridge said.

"That's not all," Cruger said entering the infirmary along with Syd and Kat.

"Get her away from me! She is the one who attacked me!" Z yelled frantically.

"What?" Bridge, Cruger, Kat, and Sky said in unison.

"Yeah Z. Whatever are you talking about?" Syd asked a little too calmly.

"Is this true Cadet Drew?" Cruger asked.

"If you ask me, she received one too many bumps on her head, because she's delusional," Syd replied.

"Are you sure it was Syd?" Sky asked Z.

"Yes I'm sure. Who else uses a fist of iron?" Z answered.

"Syd! How could you?" Sky yelled.

"I did it for you! I did it for you Sky!" Syd stated.

"That leaves me no other choice. Cadet Drew, hand over your morpher!" Cruger ordered.

Syd handed over her morpher. She was led to her prison cell by two cadets shortly thereafter.

"I can't believe this! We've taken away two morphers today!" Kat said in shock.

"Two?" Sky, Z, and Bridge asked in unison.

"We also had to take Cadet Landors' morpher as well," Cruger stated.

"There's something you should know about Jack," Bridge said.

"What is it Cadet?" Cruger asked.

"He attacked me as well," Bridge replied.

"What is happening to my rangers?" Cruger mentally asked himself.

Note: Thanks to everybody who has read and/or reviewed my story. I appreciate it. I know this story has become darker as of late, and it just goes to show what happens when individuals become consumed with jealousy. Anyways, I'll update as soon as I come up with the ideas for the next chapter.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers.

**Dissension within the Ranks**

Chapter 4

Bridge, Z, and Sky were eating dinner at the cafeteria.

"I can't believe Jack attacked you two!" Z exclaimed.

"Yeah and I can't believe Syd attacked you Z!" Bridge commented.

"He always does this!" Z remarked ignoring Bridge's comment.

"Does what?" Sky asked.

"Whenever he finds out a guy is remotely interested in me, Jack threatens them or scares them off, but I've never known him to actually follow through with his threats like he did today," Z explained.

"Don't worry Z, we're not afraid of Jack," Sky said comfortingly.

"Speak for yourself Sky," Bridge stated.

"Look Bridge, Jack can't hurt you. He's in prison now," Sky said.

"What if he escapes?" Bridge asked frightened.

"**If** he escapes, the alarms will sound, and we'll catch him before any harm is done and he'll be back in prison," Sky answered.

"How can you say that Sky? Jack doesn't belong in prison!" Z exclaimed.

"Oh and Syd does?" Sky remarked.

"She attacked me!" Z answered.

"Jack attacked Bridge and me!" Sky exclaimed.

"I don't believe this! You love the thought of Jack in prison don't you?" Z yelled.

"That's not true! We're a team Z! I'm just saying that right now I think it's best if we're separated until everyone cools off," Sky explained.

"What is it with you and defending Syd?" Z snapped.

"Who said I was defending her?" Sky asked.

"You practically said she doesn't belong in prison!" Z remarked.

"Well you know what I don't get about you?" Sky asked Z.

"What?" Z answered.

"I thought this is what you wanted? Syd is out of the picture temporarily so you can have me all to yourself, yet you want Jack out of prison even though he attacked Bridge and me," Sky said.

"I care about Jack!" Z shouted. After she realized what she said, she gasped and put a hand to her mouth.

"I thought you cared about me, but I guess not huh?" Sky said getting up from the table and walking out of the cafeteria.

"Sky wait," Z said.

Sky ignored what Z said and just kept walking.

"I thought you cared about Sky too," Bridge added.

"Bridge, I do. It came out the wrong way!" Z explained.

"Well, you might as well forget about dating Sky, because I think you just broke his heart," Bridge commented.

XXXXXXXXXX

In the prison section of the academy, were Jack and Syd. They were in separate cells that happened to be facing one another.

"I bet Sky loves this. Here I am in prison, and Mr. Second-in-Command probably gets to take over as leader!" Jack remarked.

"Z probably loves this as well. With me and prison, she can make her move on Sky without me getting in the way!" Syd stated.

"I can't believe Cruger took away our morphers!" Jack commented.

"It serves you right for attacking Sky!" Syd shouted.

"Yeah well it serves you right for attacking Z!" Jack snapped.

"It was self defense Jack! Z was attacking me too!" Syd explained.

"Oh, so using a fist of iron is self defense?" Jack asked.

Syd was silent.

"Because to me that sounds like cheating!" Jack stated.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sky entered the command center where he found Cruger. He saluted and then stood in front of him at attention.

"What is it cadet?" Cruger asked.

"Sir, I think you should release Jack and Syd from prison," Sky answered.

"I'm afraid I can't do that Sky," Cruger answered.

"But sir, don't you see what this is doing to the team?" Sky asked.

"If you mean did I see how you, Bridge, and Z were attacked today then yes," Cruger replied.

"This is destroying our team," Sky stated.

"Cadet, I cannot have any threat to security roaming the hallways freely!" Cruger yelled.

"Whatever happened to them being 'your rangers'?" Sky asked.

"They are," Cruger said.

"Then let them free," Sky answered.

"I cannot and I will not and that's final cadet!" Cruger shouted.

Sky saluted and left realizing that he wasn't going to win this battle.

XXXXXXXXXX

At Grumm's ship, Grumm was planning his next attack on Newtech City.

"Broodwing, what is the biggest explosive device you have for sale?" Grumm asked the mercenary.

"It's…" Broodwing started to answer.

"Nevermind that, I'll take it," Grumm interrupted.

"Ah but as you know my Emperor, I do not simply give things away for free," Broodwing said.

"Why of course not. Will this do?" Grumm asked holding up a thick bundle of cash.

"Oh yes. That'll be just fine," Broodwing answered happy to get more money.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Open!" Sky commanded outside of Syd's prison cell.

Sky ran up to Sky and embraced him in a hug.

"Oh Sky, I'm so happy to see you! You have to get me out of here! I can't stand being here!" Syd said frantically.

"Here's the thing Syd. I tried that. I talked to the Commander and asked that you and Jack be set free, but he said 'no'," Sky explained.

"Wait a second. You actually asked that I be set free too?" Jack asked shocked.

"Of course I did Jack. We're a team remember?" Sky answered.

"Wow! Here I thought Sky would be thrilled that I'm in prison," Jack thought to himself.

"I'll keep trying to talk the Commander into letting you two out, but let's get one thing straight. This kind of behavior must stop. It's destroying our team," Sky commented.

"If you would have just stayed away from Z, none of this would've happened," Jack stated.

"I never even did anything with Z Jack!" Sky yelled.

"Jack, Sky's the one trying to get us out of here, at the very least you could show some gratitude," Syd scolded.

Just then, they heard "Rangers, please report to the command center immediately! I repeat rangers, please report to the command center immediately!"

"I have to go," Sky said. "Open!" The prison door opened at the sound of Sky's voice and closed behind him.

"Please be careful Sky," Syd thought to herself.

XXXXXXXXXX

Within moments, Z, Bridge, and Sky were in the command center standing at attention before their Commander.

"The krybots are up to something again. I want the three of you to go to sector C and stop whatever it is they are up to," Cruger commanded.

"Just the three of us sir?" Sky asked.

"Yes, Sam and I will remain here in the event of another attack while you three are busy," Cruger answered. "Now, go!"

"Yes sir!" the blue, yellow, and green rangers answered in unison.

"Ready?" Sky asked.

"Ready!" Bridge and Z answered.

"S.P.D. Emergency!" the three shouted in unison.

Sky got on his bike while Z and Bridge got into a jeep and were on their way.

XXXXXXXXXX

Meanwhile in sector C, the krybots led by an orange head and two blue heads had finished tying up all the workers they could catch with rope. The krybots had occupied a warehouse and taken the workers prisoner, but that was just the beginning of their problems.

Within minutes, the three rangers arrived at the warehouse.

"Cruger **did** say sector C right?" Bridge asked.

"That's what I heard," Z answered.

"Stay alert," Sky stated.

They headed into the warehouse.

By this time, the orange head had finished setting the timer on the explosive device Grumm had purchased from Broodwing. It was set to go off in 30 minutes.

The rangers had made their way into the warehouse and were scanning the place for krybots.

"Do you guys see anything?" Sky asked.

"No. It's weird. I thought Cruger said the krybots were up to something yet I don't even see any krybots," Z answered.

"Yeah, you'd think the krybots would be attacking us as soon as we entered the warehouse," Bridge added.

Little did the rangers know that they were walking into a trap. The krybots weren't attacking the rangers yet, because they wanted to take up as much time as possible so that the rangers and the workers would be caught in the explosion.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back at the Academy, Kat and Cruger were monitoring what was happening at the warehouse.

"Oh no!" Kat exclaimed.

"What is it Kat?" Cruger asked.

"Not only do the krybots have the workers tied up, but they've also set up some kind of explosive device!" Kat answered.

"What?" Cruger yelled angry that he may have just sent three of his rangers right into the trap.

"That's not all Doggie. This explosive device is like nothing I've ever seen and could very well bring the entire warehouse down on top of anyone who happens to be inside when it explodes," Kat stated.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back at the warehouse, the rangers had finally made it to the back of the warehouse where the krybots, the workers, and the bomb happened to be.

"There you are rangers. What took you so long?" the orange head asked.

The normal krybots dispersed to attack the rangers while the two blue heads and the orange head stayed back dragging this battle out as long as they could. Their plan was working. The timer on the bomb displayed 20 minutes.

Z had formed her Delta Max Striker and blasted a krybot in front of her, another to her left, to her right, and behind her.

Bridge also had formed his Delta Max Striker. He leapt into the air and fired short circuiting four krybots as well.

Sky on the other hand chose to use his Patrol Grip. He ducked a punch by a krybot and elbowed the krybot in the back of the head. A second krybot attempted a kick. Sky caught its leg and swept its other leg out from under it. A third krybot threw a punch that Sky blocked. Sky nailed the krybot in the stomach with his Patrol Grip sending the krybot flying backwards several feet. A fourth krybot had a laser instead of a hand and fired at Sky. The blue ranger avoided the attack through a diving somersault. In the process of completing his somersault, Sky had formed his Delta Max Striker and by the time Sky finished his somersault, he crouched and blasted the krybot.

All that stood in the rangers' way now was the orange head and the two blue heads. The timer on the bomb displayed 15 minutes.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back at the Academy, Kat and Cruger were watching nervously hoping that the rangers would be able to disarm the bomb or at least get the workers and themselves out of there in time.

"We've gotta warn them about the bomb!" Cruger exclaimed.

Kat contacted the rangers. "Rangers, there's an explosive device set to go off. You need to try to disarm it if you can. If not, then just make sure to get the workers and yourselves out of there before it explodes!"

XXXXXXXXXX

Back at the warehouse, one of the blue heads went to attack the rangers while the orange head and the other blue head stayed behind.

"Why is only one blue head attacking?" Z asked.

"They're trying to drag the battle out so we have less time to disarm the bomb and/or get the workers out," Sky explained. "Too bad that won't work though. I'll take the orange head. Z and Bridge, you take the two blue heads!"

"Got it," Bridge and Z replied.

One of the blue heads fired a laser at Z. Z dove out of the way. Then fired her Delta Max Striker at it knocking it back several feet until it crashed into a wall and short circuited.

Bridge fired his Delta Max Striker at the other blue head. It dove out of the way and returned fire. Bridge avoided that. Then, the blue head was blasted in the back by Z and her Delta Max Striker. The blue head dropped to the ground short circuited.

Sky fired his Delta Max Striker at the orange head, but it deflected the attack with its sword.

"Time for a shock!" the orange head said. It sent orange lightning into the three rangers knocking them to the ground.

"That does it! R.I.C. you're on!" Sky said throwing up the bone. R.I.C. caught it in his mouth and transformed into the Canine Cannon.

"Canine Cannon!" the rangers said.

"Ready? Fire!" Sky commanded.

"Time for a shock!" the orange head said sending orange lightning to meet the blast from the Canine Cannon.

The two blasts met in the middle and neither side seemed to be getting the advantage.

"Full power rangers!" Sky ordered. With that, the blast from the Canine Cannon won shattering the orange head into pieces.

Bridge then ran to the explosive device to try to deactivate it since after all, he was the mechanical genius of the group.

In the meantime, Z and Sky were working on cutting the rope that tied the workers together.

"Guys, there's only 5 minutes left!" Bridge warned.

Z and Sky had succeeded in cutting the rope and were escorting the workers out of the warehouse. By the time they got back, the timer on the explosive device displayed 2 minutes.

"Guys, I have no idea how to turn this thing off! This is like nothing I've ever seen before!" Bridge exclaimed.

"Forget it Bridge, let's go!" Sky ordered.

"No! Think of how many dollars in damage it will be if the explosive device goes off! I have to deactivate it!" Bridge replied.

"Bridge, you've been trying to deactivate it and to no avail. Sky's right. Let's just go!"

"No! You guys told me to deactivate the explosive device and that's exactly what I'm going to do!" Bridge responded.

Sky turned Bridge so that he was looking at him face to face. "Listen to me Bridge, it's ok. You've done your best, and that's all you can do and all anyone expects," Sky said.

"If this goes off, all of those workers will be out of jobs and I can't allow that to happen!" Bridge said. He turned his attention back to the explosive device. The timer on it read 30 seconds.

"Forgive me Bridge," Sky said karate chopping the back of Bridge's neck knocking him unconscious. "Z, take Bridge and get out of here!" Sky ordered.

"What about you?" Z asked.

"There's only 30 seconds left. That's not enough time for you to make it out of here. I'll power down and create a force field that will keep the explosion at bay while you and Bridge get out of here!" Sky explained.

"Are you crazy? The explosive device is powerful enough to bring this entire warehouse down! There's no way your force field can stand up to that!" Z exclaimed.

"I know my force field can't stand up to the explosion. It's not supposed to. It's just supposed to buy you and Bridge enough time to make it to the exit. Now go!" Sky ordered.

Z reluctantly did as she told draping one of Bridge's arms over her behind her neck and over her shoulder walking him towards the exit.

Sky had powered down. He then heard Cruger contact him through his morpher.

"Cadet Tate, this is an act of suicide! I will not have you putting your life in jeopardy! Stand down! That is an order!" Cruger commanded.

"I can't sir! As it stands, Bridge and Z won't make it out of the warehouse in time, and I'm the only one with powers that can hold back the explosion. I'm sorry, but this is the only way!" Sky said.

The timer on the explosive device displayed that there was five seconds left. Four seconds. Three seconds. Two seconds. One second. Then, it exploded.

Sky waved his right arm in a circle and erected a force field holding the explosion back.

Z heard the explosion start. "Oh God, Sky!" Z shouted.

She heard, "Forget about me Z! Keep going and don't look back!"

Z could see the entrance/exit was just a few feet away. She tightened her grip on Bridge and continued walking.

Every muscle in Sky's body was straining. Throwing up a force field required just as much if not more mental energy as it did physical energy because after all, Sky **did** create force fields with his mind. Every muscle in Sky's body ached and felt like it was on fire. Sweat was pouring down his face. The heat from the explosion although the explosion itself was held back by his force field was unbearable. Sky had started to develop a massive headache.

Z had made it out of the warehouse with Bridge and put Bridge in the passenger side of the jeep. She then went over to the driver's side and started the engine. The two of them made their way back to the Academy without Sky.

"Well Dad" Sky thought to himself. "I know you're in heaven watching over me, and it looks as though I'll be seeing you sooner rather than later because it doesn't look like I'll be making it out of here alive. Z, Bridge, Syd, Jack, I'm doing this for you. This whole mess that happened today was all my fault. If Syd and Z hadn't been fighting over me, none of this would've happened. If I hadn't made Jack jealous, none of this would've happened. At least with me gone, the four of you can be a team again without me there to cause any problems. Cruger, Commander, please forgive me for I have failed you."

Sky couldn't hold up the force field any longer. It dropped and the explosion consumed him. The very next moment, the entire warehouse was falling down on top of him.

To Be Continued…

Note: I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Thanks once again to everybody who has read and/or reviewed my fanfic. I know I've been pretty good about updating, but I don't know how much longer that will continue as I am in summer school at college and I have finals this Thursday, but we'll see.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers.

**Dissension within the Ranks**

Chapter 5

Z and Bridge arrived at the parking facility at the S.P.D. Academy. It was at this time that Bridge regained consciousness.

"Huh? Where am I? What happened?" Bridge asked.

Z was silent as tears were streaming down her cheek just as they had been the whole ride back.

Bridge noticed this as well. "Z, what happened? Where's Sky?"

There was still no answer from Z.

"I vaguely remember the bomb was about to go off and you and Sky were telling me we had to leave and then that's all I remember," Bridge said.

Z opened the jeep door on the driver's side, shut it and then headed toward her room.

"Hey Z! Wait where are you going?" Bridge asked.

XXXXXXXXXX

"This can't be happening! Please tell me this was all a dream and I'll wake up and everything will be ok!" Kat said to Cruger both still in the command center.

"Notify all cadets to go to sector C. We have to find Sky! Maybe it's not too late to save him," Cruger said.

"All cadets please go to sector C. I repeat all cadets please go to sector C," Kat commanded over the intercom.

"Come on Kat. You and I are going too," Cruger said grabbing Kat's hand.

XXXXXXXXXX

Jack and Syd had heard the announcement as well from within their prison cells.

"Did you hear that Jack?" Syd asked.

"Yeah, I wonder why **all** cadets have to go to sector C," Jack answered.

"Do you think something bad happened?" Syd asked.

"Probably. I've never heard a command like that the whole time I've been here. Something is seriously wrong," Jack stated.

XXXXXXXXXX

Minutes later, Kat, Sam, Cruger, Boom, and all the cadets parked in front of where used to be a warehouse. All that remained was rubble.

"Ok listen up! Cadet Tate is somewhere underneath all this rubble. I want him found and taken to the infirmary immediately!" Cruger shouted.

Kat, Sam, Boom, and Cruger joined the cadets in searching through the rubble for Sky.

"There is no way Sky could've survived this," Kat thought to herself taking in the sight before her.

XXXXXXXXXX

Z ran into her room and shut the door behind her just as Bridge caught up to her, the door slamming in his face before he could enter.

"Z, come on it's me Bridge! Open up!" Bridge shouted.

There was no response, but Bridge could hear Z crying.

"Come on Z! Open up!" Bridge said knocking on the door.

"Go away! I don't want to talk to you!" Z yelled.

Bridge was about to knock on the door again but he decided he'd just leave her alone. "How am I possibly going to tell Jack and Syd what happened?" Bridge thought to himself. "They'll be crushed, especially Syd!"

XXXXXXXXXX

Back in the prison area of the Academy, Jack and Syd were devising a plan to figure out what exactly was going on.

"Ok, here's the plan," Jack said. "I'm going to phase through my prison cell door. Then I'm going to make my way to the command center," Jack said.

"Jack you're forgetting an important detail," Syd commented.

"What important detail?" Jack asked upset that Syd had a problem with his plan.

"You'll cause the alarms to go off!" Syd replied.

"So what? There's nobody here Syd! Everyone left!" Jack retorted.

"You don't know that!" Syd exclaimed.

"You heard the announcement. **All** cadets were to go to sector C," Jack said.

"Kat and Cruger aren't cadets," Syd pointed out. "Neither is Boom."

"Well everyone else is! Everyone else left!" Jack remarked.

"Jack, do you really want to risk Cruger catching you sneak out of prison?" Syd asked.

As much as he hated to admit it, Syd had a point.

"Fine, we'll wait until someone tells us something, but if nobody tells us anything soon, then I'm phasing out of here and finding out myself what's up!" Jack replied.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back at sector C, everyone was still trying to find Sky. Even with all the cadets searching, their search has come up with nothing.

"Doggie," Kat said her voice full of concern. "I know this is a difficult time for you, but it is highly unlikely that Sky survived the explosion."

"Are you suggesting we abandon Sky?" Cruger asked.

"No. I'm just saying that trying to find him beneath all this rubble is like trying to find a needle in a haystack. Even if we do get to him, he'll probably already have passed away," Kat answered.

"Don't you dare say that!" Cruger yelled.

Boom, Sam, and all the cadets stared at Cruger after his outburst.

"When General Benaag took you prisoner, did we abandon you? No, and we aren't abandoning Sky either!" Cruger explained.

XXXXXXXXXX

At Grumm's ship, the Troobians were celebrating their victory.

"I can't believe we actually succeeded in eliminating one of those pesky power rangers!" Morgana shrieked.

"Yes, it didn't go according to plan, but eliminating one ranger is better than eliminating none I suppose," Grumm remarked.

"One down, six to go," Broodwing commented.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back in the prison area of the Academy, Bridge approached Jack and Syd's prison cells.

"Bridge!" Syd shrieked upon seeing him. "Am I glad to see you! Have you come to set us free?"

"I'm afraid I have some bad news," Bridge said averting his eyes from the gazes of the pink and red rangers.

"Bad news? What bad news?" Syd asked.

"Yeah, and what was with that announcement about all cadets reporting to sector C?" Jack added.

"There was an announcement? When did that happen?" Bridge asked.

"Bridge! You were saying you had bad news!" Syd said realizing Jack got Bridge sidetracked.

"Sky sacrificed himself stopping an explosion in the warehouse at sector C," Bridge said hurriedly.

"He did what?" Syd yelled.

"What do you mean he sacrificed himself?" Jack asked.

"Look, I'm sorry but I don't know any details. That's all I know. Apparently, I was unconscious when it happened," Bridge said.

"But Sky's all right isn't he?" Syd asked with a worried tone of voice.

"He didn't come back with me and Z," Bridge answered.

XXXXXXXXXX

The search still continued over at sector C. The sun had already set and the moon had risen in its place. A bright full moon lit up the night sky that sparkled with millions of stars.

"Look Doggie, it's getting dark. I think we should quit the search for tonight and continue first thing tomorrow morning," Kat stated.

"Damn it Kat! For the last time we are **not** abandoning Sky! If there's some place you'd rather be, if there's something you'd rather be doing then leave!" Cruger snapped.

Boom had spotted a hand underneath some rubble. "Sir, I think I've found him!" Boom shouted.

Immediately, all the cadets, Cruger, Sam, and Kat rushed over to Boom.

"Boom, where?" Sam asked.

"There!" Boom answered pointing to a hand sticking out from underneath some rubble.

Cruger and some cadets dug through the rubble, and sure enough it was Sky. He was lying face down on the ground. He was filthy from all the dust and dirt that fell on top of and buried him. His S.P.D. uniform was ripped, torn, and shredded in many locations with blood oozing out of his exposed skin. He had several cuts on his head and face. The worst part was that he was lying in a rather large pool of his own blood.

Cruger put two fingers to Sky's neck and felt for a pulse, but he couldn't feel anything.

Cruger let out a blood curdling howl. "Damn it Sky! Don't you dare die on me!" Cruger shouted.

Two cadets had already wheeled a stretcher over to where Sky lay.

"Get him on the stretcher and to the infirmary fast!" Kat ordered.

To Be Continued…

Note: Wow! Ok, so this was my shortest chapter yet. I apologize for that, but I thought that was a nice place to stop. I came to the conclusion that instead of thanking my reviewers in general, I could thank them individually because I don't seem to be have too many.

**monkay-pooh**: Thank you for your positive comments. I'll keep your suggestions of couplings in mind. Oh, and I'm sorry that my fanfic has virtually lost all of its humor that it used to have early on.

**KendrixAimeeOliver**: I appreciate you taking the time to review my fanfic. To answer your question, nobody has officially hooked up yet in my fanfic. I agree that it is sad how devastating jealousy can be.

**Beautiful-Me89**: Thank you for being one of four people who have actually reviewed my fanfic. I'll keep your suggestion for what coupling you **don't** want to see happen in mind as well.

**sye04**: I also want to thank you for taking the time to review my fanfic. I hope you continue to do so and I'm glad you've enjoyed it thus far.

I have to say that I was afraid something like this would happen. I've only received a total of 8 reviews from a total of 4 different reviewers, and not counting this chapter, I've submitted 4 chapters. Hmm…maybe it has something to do with me saying something to the effect of read and/or reviewed which led people to do the former but not the latter. However, it is the people who have taken the time to review that have motivated me to push on with my story and update sooner rather than later and for that, I am very grateful.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers.

**Dissension within the Ranks**

Chapter 6

The next morning, Kat made her way to the infirmary and found Cruger standing at Sky's bedside. Sky was in a hospital gown. He had a bunch of tubes coming out of him and he was hooked up to various machines one of them being life support. Kat put a hand on Cruger's shoulder.

"You didn't sleep last night did you?" Kat asked.

"Sleep? Of course not! How can I sleep at a time like this?" Cruger replied.

"Have you left his bedside at all?" Kat inquired.

"No," Cruger answered.

"Doggie, I don't think staying up all night at Sky's bedside is good for you. You should get yourself some fresh air and some sleep," Kat said.

"Why did it have to be Sky? Why did he do this?" Cruger asked.

"He did it to make sure Bridge and Z would be ok," Kat answered.

"I feel like Sky is my own son. With A-Squad M.I.A., Sky is my longest serving cadet. Even when his father was a ranger, Sky was at the academy since he had lost his mother at a young age. Then, when his father had served his term, he left taking Sky with him. I thought I would never see Sky again. Years later, I was delighted to find that Sky had joined the Academy. He quickly became friends with Cadet Dru Harrington. He was so different back then. Nothing like he is now. He was a mischievous party animal that liked to cause trouble. He didn't care about work. All he cared about was having fun. Then, about three years ago, Cadet Dru Harrington was assigned to the Nebula Academy leaving Sky without a best friend. Shortly after, Sky found out that his father had passed away. That's when I noticed a change in him. He started to become cold, distant, aloof, some might even say anti-social. He forgone any relationships with anybody and buried himself in his work. He lived, breathed, ate, and slept S.P.D. I believe he did it so he wouldn't have to deal with the pain and sorrow he felt for losing both his best friend and his father. Since then, I've watched Sky become a much better fighter. His test scores are amazing. He is highly skilled in weaponry. Thanks to Syd, Z, Jack, and Bridge, especially Syd and Bridge, I think Sky is starting to finally become a shadow of the person he was back when he and Dru were best friends. He's still pig headed, stubborn, and isn't all that approachable at times, but the four of them have gotten him to loosen up a bit. Now, look at him. We don't even know if he's going to make it or not." Cruger stated.

XXXXXXXXXX

Bridge was in the cafeteria eating breakfast and he was surprised that Z wasn't eating breakfast as well.

"Hmm…maybe Z isn't up yet," Bridge thought to himself. "No wait a second. She probably **is** up but she probably doesn't want to see me or talk to me though I don't know why. I don't get why she's so angry with me. What did I do wrong? I didn't do anything wrong did I? At least I don't remember doing anything wrong. What exactly does one mean by 'wrong'? Wrong is such a relative word. What one person would consider wrong another person might not. So can anything ever truly be wrong?"

XXXXXXXXXX

Back in Z's room. She was lying in bed. Cruger wasn't the only one who hadn't gotten any sleep last night. Z couldn't get the sound of the explosion out of her head no matter how hard she tried. She felt so helpless, so defeated. She felt like there was something she should have been able to do so things wouldn't have turned out the way they had.

"This is all Bridge's fault!" Z thought to herself. "If he had just left once Sky and I had evacuated all the workers, none of this would've happened. But no, he had to be concerned with how many dollars in damage there would be and how many people would be without jobs! How could he do that? Life is more important than money. Life is more important than some job. Sky was still young. He had his whole life ahead of him only for it to be stopped abruptly thanks to Bridge. Stupid Bridge!"

XXXXXXXXXX

Back in the prison section of the Academy, Jack and Syd were pacing back and forth in their prison cells. Neither of them had been able to get any sleep either last night. They had both been wondering what exactly happened to Sky. They were both waiting eagerly to be informed by somebody, anybody who actually had a clue what was going on around here.

"I can't believe this! There goes our only shot of getting out of here!" Syd exclaimed.

"Only shot? What are you babbling about?" Jack remarked.

"Sky! Something bad obviously happened to Sky and he was our only chance of getting out of here! Face it, Z isn't going to want me out because of what I did to her. Bridge isn't going to want you out because of what you did to him. Cruger isn't going to want either of us out because he confiscated our morphers for crying out loud!" Syd yelled.

"That's the second time that even though I hate to admit it, Syd has a point," Jack thought to himself.

"I need to know that Sky's alright. I don't think I can live without him. We've been through so much together and I can't stand the thought of that stopping now," Syd said.

"Hey, don't worry about it Syd. You know as well as I do that Sky's a fighter. Whatever happened to him no matter how bad it may have been, Sky isn't going down without a fight," Jack reassured Syd.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back in the infirmary, Kat was still taking in everything that Cruger had said not too long ago.

"I had no idea Doggie viewed Sky as his own son. Now that I think about it, he does seem pretty protective of him. I mean back when Wootox and Sky had switched bodies, he seemed extremely pissed off at Wootox. More pissed off than I've ever seen him before. Hey, that's it! Maybe that's why Doggie made Sky blue ranger instead of red ranger. To protect him. He knows that the red ranger is always the one in the most danger and he didn't want that to be Sky. Come to think of it, last night Doggie nearly bit my head off every time I suggested postponing the search for Sky. I mean it's not like I don't care about Sky too. I've known him just as long as Doggie has. He seems to forget that I've been here just as long as he has. It wasn't like I was abandoning Sky although I can see how Doggie would think that." Kat thought to herself.

Just then Bridge had entered the infirmary.

"How is he?" Bridge asked referring to Sky.

Kat shook herself from her thoughts to give Bridge an answer. "He's doing no better than he was when he found him I'm afraid," Kat responded.

"But he's alive isn't he?" Bridge asked his voice full of hope.

"Yes, but only because he's hooked up to a life support machine," Kat answered.

"His heart wasn't beating when we found him," Cruger added.

"What are you saying he is dead?" Bridge asked not realizing that he had raised his voice.

"Unofficially," Kat replied.

"No he isn't!" Cruger corrected.

"Whoa," Bridge thought to himself. "I've seen Cruger angry before, but never like this!"

"Was there something else you wanted?" Cruger asked impatiently.

"Huh? Oh yeah! I need your help with something. Z hasn't come out of her room ever since she and I got back last night. I'm worried about her. She hasn't eaten anything and I think she's been crying all night," Bridge answered.

"I'll go see what I can do," Kat said leaving the infirmary.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back in the prison area of the Academy, Jack and Syd finally had given up pacing and sat on their beds.

"Hey Syd?" Jack said.

"Yeah?" Syd asked.

"Since Sky's out of the picture for an undetermined amount of time, what do you say you and I hook up?" Jack answered.

"I can't believe you just said that!" Syd shouted.

"What?" Jack asked.

"Aren't you the slightest bit sad about what happened to Sky?" Syd asked.

"Hold on a second. First of all, we don't even know that anything happened to Sky at all. Secondly, even if something did happen we don't know the severity of it," Jack responded.

"I know you and Sky never really got along, but damn I never knew you were so heartless!" Syd snapped.

"Heartless?" Jack asked.

"I thought you had the hots for Z? Whatever happened to that?" Syd asked.

"It's like you said Syd. Without Sky, we're probably never going to get out of here, so we might as well enjoy each other's company," Jack stated.

"Enjoy each other's company? Dream on you sick freak!" Syd exclaimed.

"Just so you know, the way you and Z were rolling around on the floor yesterday really turned me on," Jack stated.

"Eww. I would never date you! You want to know why? You're a player Jack. There's no way in hell you could remain faithful to any one person. You salivate at any girl who catches your attention. That's why you and I could never be together! You'd probably end up cheating on me!" Syd explained.

"Gee Syd, I'm hurt," Jack commented sarcastically.

Syd rolled her eyes and lied down resting her head on her pillow that way she wouldn't have to look at Jack.

XXXXXXXXXX

Kat had made her way to Z's room and found the door to her room not only shut, but locked. She knocked.

"Leave me alone Bridge!" Z shouted.

"It's not Bridge. It's me Kat!" Kat replied.

Z pushed a button on the remote to first unlock the door. She pushed another button on the remote to open it.

Kat entered the room and made her way over to Z.

"Did you find Sky?" was the first thing Z asked.

"Yes we did," Kat answered.

"Is he ok?" Z asked hoping she'd make it two for two and get another 'yes' for a response.

"I'm afraid not. He's on life support as we speak," Kat responded.

A frown appeared on Z's face.

"Life support? You mean to say Sky is dead?" Z asked horrified.

"Not necessarily," Kat commented.

"What do you mean 'not necessarily'?" Z asked.

"Well, maybe back in say the year 2005 life support machines just simply delayed inevitable death, but now in that we are in the year 2025, those kinds of life support machines have become obsolete. Don't forget that all of our equipment here at S.P.D. is state of the art. The best of its time. My theory is that after being on life support for awhile, Sky's heart will become strong enough to beat and pump blood on its own without the use of life support," Kat explained.

"You mean, there's a chance he'll pull through?" Z asked.

"Exactly," was Kat's response.

The corners of Z's mouth bent upwards into a smile.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back in the infirmary, Bridge was left alone with Cruger and a seemingly lifeless Sky.

"I couldn't sleep last night. Ever since I joined the Academy, Sky's been my roommate. Every night he's been there. I feel so safe at night knowing that he's there with me. However, for the first time he wasn't there last night. I wasn't able to sleep without that sense of security," Bridge said.

Cruger just stared at Sky making Bridge wonder if he had even heard a single word that he had spoken.

"Commander, please can you tell me what happened. I don't remember. I get a distinct impression from Z that what happened last night was my fault," Bridge stated.

"Did you think that maybe the reason you got that impression was because it **was** your fault?" Cruger fired back.

"With all due respect sir, how so?" Bridge asked.

"If you hadn't insisted on trying to stop a bomb you had no idea how to stop, none of this would've happened. If you had thought about your teammate, your supposed best friend, instead of how costly the damage would be or how many people would be unemployed as a result of the explosion, none of this would've happened. No, you were more concerned about money, jobs, things that could be replaced instead of the life of another human being, something that **cannot** be replaced!" Cruger shouted.

A look of horror appeared on Bridge's face. It finally sunk in. What happened to Sky **was** his fault. There was no question about it. Z and Cruger both seemed to think so. It was all starting to come back to him. Bridge remembered saying those things that Cruger mentioned he had said. "Oh my God! I did this to Sky!" Bridge thought to himself. "Sky was willing to risk his life just to see to it that Z and I would make it out of the warehouse unharmed. Oh Sky, I am so incredibly sorry! How could I do this to you, my best friend?"

XXXXXXXXXX

Back in the prison section of the Academy, Jack was waving his hand trying to get Syd's attention. When he saw that that wasn't working, he just spoke to her.

"Are you telling me that you have no feelings toward me at all?" Jack asked.

"God, does he ever shut up?" Syd thought to herself referring to Jack.

"Hello? Earth to Syd!" Jack said.

"Oh yes I have feelings for you Jack. Deep, passionate feelings Jack," Syd answered.

"Ha! I knew it!" Jack yelled.

"Oh, but you didn't let me finish!" Syd replied. "I have feelings for you alright, feelings of hatred and disgust!"

"Oh come on, quit denying how you **really** feel!" Jack said.

"What the hell is your deal anyway?" Syd burst out.

"Oh come on Syd, I'll take whatever I can get. That's my motto. It applied back to when I was on the streets stealing from the rich to give to the poor and it applies now. The only thing I can get right now is you, so I'll take it," Jack stated.

Syd was repulsed.

"You know Syd, there's nothing stopping me from phasing through my cell door and yours and getting me some," Jack smirked.

"Damn it Jack! Will you shut up and quit letting your testosterone do the speaking!" Syd yelled.

XXXXXXXXXX

Kat and Z had made their way to the infirmary after getting Z some breakfast first so she could finally get something inside her stomach.

"Look Bridge, I'm sorry for the way I reacted," Z said to Bridge upon entering the infirmary.

Bridge ran over and hugged Z and started crying.

"No Z, I'm the one who should be sorry. You and Cruger were right. This is all my fault and I am **so **sorry," Bridge finally got out through sobs.

Z returned the hug taking her right hand and rubbing Bridge's back in a circling motion.

"Don't say such things Bridge. It wasn't your fault. I was wrong about that. Sky's going to be fine. Kat told me that once Sky's heart is strong enough to beat and pump blood on its own, he won't need to be hooked up to life support anymore," Z explained.

"Really? That's fantastic!" Bridge exclaimed.

Cruger's ears perked up at what Z had said.

"I think I owe you an apology as well," Cruger said to Kat.

Kat looked up at Cruger and their eyes locked.

"I have been anything but kind to you last night and today and for that I am sorry. I always tell the cadets not to let their emotions get the best of them because it gives the enemy the advantage and here I didn't practice what I preached and let my emotions get the best of me," Cruger said.

"Oh Doggie, you have nothing to be sorry for. I found out today how much Sky really means to you and now I understand why you were so upset, but like Z said, soon Sky's heart is going to be strong enough so that he won't need to be hooked up to life support," Kat replied.

Cruger and Kat hugged. "I couldn't hear any better news," Cruger whispered in Kat's ears.

To Be Continued…

Note: There. Another chapter finished. I find it rather amusing how the length of my chapters have alternated between around 2,000 words one chapter to around 3,000 words the next chapter and so on and so forth. Believe me, I didn't do this intentionally, it's just the way it's been turning out which makes it that much more amusing well to me at least.. I've received nothing but positive comments so far, which I find surprising since this is my first fanfic. (I hope I didn't just jinx myself!) Thanks again to everyone who has reviewed my fanfic.


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers, but you knew that right?

**Dissension within the Ranks**

Chapter 7

Even though two of their teammates were in prison and one of their teammates was on life support, the other rangers still had to train, do fighting simulations, attend weapon seminars, and everything else that is associated with being an S.P.D. power ranger. After Z had finished her training, she headed back to her room to take a shower.

"So, how's Sky doing?" Sam asked.

Z nearly jumped out of her S.P.D. shoes.

"Sam, you startled me!" Z exclaimed to the ball of light.

"I'm sorry! I thought you'd be used to me floating around as a ball of light by now," Sam apologized.

"No. I don't think I'm **ever** going to get used to that!" Z remarked.

"Um, ok back to my question. How's Sky doing?" Sam asked.

"Look, can this wait? I'm all sweaty, and I'd like to take a shower," Z said.

"Come on Z, it's just a simple question," Sam whined.

"Yeah about a very complicated situation," Z commented.

"Ok, I'll let you take your shower, but just know that if you ever need anything, anything at all, I'm here for you. I think I owe it to you considering you were the first friend I've ever had," Sam said.

"Thanks Sam," Z replied.

The ball of light floated out of Z's room. Z headed into her bathroom and shut the door behind her.

XXXXXXXXXX

Bridge had already finished taking his shower, and he found Boom in the S.P.D. lab.

"Hey Boom!" Bridge greeted.

"Hey Bridge! What's up?" Boom asked.

"When you say 'what's up?' do you mean what is actually like literally up or do you mean to ask about the recent events of my life?" Bridge asked.

Boom rolled his eyes. "I guess I **should **be used to this by now," Boom thought to himself. "The second one Bridge, the second one!" Boom replied out loud.

"Oh well in that case, not much of anything. Z and I just got out of training a little while ago. We're down three members of our team but Cruger insists that we continue our training," Bridge said.

"So, how's Sky doing?" Boom asked.

Bridge looked down at his feet after he heard Boom's question. "He **would** be just fine if it wasn't for me!" Bridge thought to himself.

"Bridge, are you ok?" Boom asked worried.

"Huh? Yeah! Yeah, I'm fine! Sky's going to be fine too in time that is," Bridge answered.

"Good to hear," Boom answered.

"No offense, but why do you care? I mean you and Sky aren't exactly friends," Bridge commented.

"Why do I care? Because he's S.P.D. and so am I. True Sky and I haven't always gotten along. True Sky usually is the one to pick on me, but still deep down I don't think he'd want anything bad to happen to me just as I wouldn't want anything bad happen to him," Boom stated.

"That is probably true," Bridge thought to himself. "Sky always seems to be looking out for everyone but himself. He puts the needs of others before his own needs. I mean look what happened in the warehouse. Of course that wouldn't have happened if I just left when Sky and Z said we should leave!"

XXXXXXXXXX

Back in the prison section of the academy, Jack was still relentlessly trying to get Syd interested in him.

"I **know** you feel something for me," Jack stated.

"You are so full of yourself!" Syd shouted.

"Oh come on Syd! Remember back when you and I had to keep an eye on Dr. Rheas? When you found out I had been with her, I'd say you were jealous!" Jack remarked.

"Jealous? Please! I wasn't jealous! I was upset that you would go over there without telling me. I was afraid that you blew our cover!" Syd responded.

"Right. Whatever you say. What about later that day huh? You said that we could share birthdays since I didn't remember when I was." Jack commented.

"I was just being polite. I felt bad that you didn't know when yours was, so I offered to share my birthday with you," Syd explained.

"Because you have feelings for me!" Jack exclaimed.

"For the last time, I don't have feelings for you Jack!" Syd yelled.

"Why are you getting so worked up?" Jack asked.

"I wouldn't have to if you'd just shut up for once! God, I never knew you were the type to blab on forever!" Syd remarked.

"Well we've been stuck in a prison cell for nearly a day! I think that's reason enough for me to go crazy!" Jack said.

"Oh, so you're blaming your raging testosterone on your being mentally unstable?" Syd asked.

"Raging testosterone? You're the only who thinks my testosterone is raging!" Jack commented.

"Uh, duh! That's because it is!" Syd shouted.

"You really should get over Sky. I have all you need right here!" Jack said with a huge grin on his face.

"You're **so** lucky I can't reach you right now, because if I could, you'd have a fist of iron pounded into that big head of yours!" Syd remarked.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back in the infirmary, Kat and Doggie were still standing at Sky's bedside.

"Doggie, please take a walk with me. It would help get your mind off of Sky," Kat begged.

"I can't do that Kat. I need to be here for Sky. He may not be conscious, but he can still feel my presence, and if I leave, then he'll feel hurt that I wasn't there for him," Cruger answered.

"Come on Doggie. You don't have to be physically there at his bedside in order for you to be there for him," Kat said.

Cruger sighed. "Well, since it doesn't look like you'll be giving up anytime soon, I might as well if you insist," Cruger replied.

Kat took Doggie's hand in hers and the two of them headed out for their walk.

XXXXXXXXXX

Z had finished her shower and came out of her bathroom with a fresh new S.P.D. uniform on and her hair was up in a towel.

"Ok, so now we can talk now right?" Sam asked.

Z saw that the floating ball of light had returned.

"What's there to talk about?" Z asked.

"You were going to tell me how Sky was doing remember?" Sam replied.

"Why don't you see for yourself instead of asking?" Z commented.

"Why are you pushing me away Z?" Sam asked hurt.

"Why are you being so forward? You can't come onto me like this. My heart already belongs to someone else, Sky. Besides, you and I couldn't possibly be an item. I mean with your being a floating ball of light and all, that makes certain things impossible," Z explained.

"Certain things? How could you think that was what I had in mind?" Sam asked.

"I don't know. What was I supposed to think about you being so forward?" Z replied.

"I could morph. Then I wouldn't be a floating ball of light," Sam suggested.

"It still wouldn't work out between us," Z answered.

"Why not?" Sam asked.

"Because certain things would still be impossible," Z explained.

"What things?" Sam asked.

"Well for one we couldn't kiss, because you'd have your helmet on. Secondly, we couldn't you know because of your uniform," Z responded.

"If I was human, would you change your mind?' Sam asked hopeful.

"No. I told you my heart belongs to Sky. Besides, with your being from the future and all, you think you're so much better than everyone here," Z answered.

"No, I don't!" Sam exclaimed.

"Yes you do! Remember when you first showed up? You basically told us that the fight with Devastation, Shorty, and Morgana wasn't our fight. You said that our technology and weaponry is nothing compared to that of the future. Some people think Sky is full of himself, but you are ten times worse!" Z concluded.

"Come on Z, you don't mean that do you?" Sam asked.

"I'm not trying to be mean Sam. I'm just pointing out what I don't like about you and why I don't think a relationship between us would work," Z said.

The floating ball of light floated out of Z's room.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back in the prison section of the Academy, Syd had fallen asleep on the bed in her cell.

"Yes! She's asleep! Now's my chance," Jack thought to himself.

He phased through his cell door causing the alarms to go off.

"Who cares if the alarms went off?" Jack thought to himself. "If I hurry, I can still do it before anyone shows up!"

He phased through Syd's cell door.

Syd was still fast asleep even though red lights were flashing and the alarms were sounding.

Jack undressed Syd and then undressed himself.

"Oh you **will **change your mind about me Syd. Once I'm through with you I can assure you Sky will be the **last** thing on your mind! Something else you should know about me is that I don't take 'no' for an answer!" Jack thought to himself.

He spread Syd's legs apart and started to rape her.

Just then, a guard was on his way to Jack's cell.

"Stop right there!" the guard commanded not being able to see what was happening yet.

When he had arrived at Jack's or rather Syd's cell, he was appalled at what he saw taking place.

"Oh my God!" was all the guard could say.

Before him was the red ranger and the pink ranger naked. The worst part was the red ranger was raping the sleeping pink ranger.

The guard's jaw dropped and he was frozen in place by the scene before him.

XXXXXXXXXX

Outside of the Academy, Cruger and Kat were just getting back from their walk when they heard the alarms go off.

"I wonder what that's all about?" Kat asked Cruger.

"Come on. Let's go find out!" Cruger answered.

The two made their way into the Academy.

XXXXXXXXXX

Bridge, Z, Boom, and Sam were going from room to room in the Academy trying to figure out what had caused the alarms to go off. With no Kat, there was nobody to announce what the situation was.

"Do you guys see anything?" Z asked.

"Nothing in this room," Sam answered.

"Nothing in here either," Boom replied coming out of another room.

"No," Bridge responded coming out of a third room.

They headed down another hallway.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back in the prison section of the Academy, the guard had finally gotten out of shock, and entered a code on the keypad opening the cell door. He picked up Jack's civilian blaster and shot Jack.

Jack fell off the bed and slumped to the floor.

The guard then got a good look at the inside of the cell. There was blood all over the bed and some of it had spilled over leaving splotches on the floor. Syd and Jack both had blood all over their naked bodies. Through this entire ordeal, Syd was fast asleep.

"How am I possibly going to explain to Cruger what the heck happened here?" the guard thought to himself.

To Be Continued…

Note: Sorry for taking so long with this update. I'll give you three reasons (reasons **not **excuses mind you) for why it took so long. Reason # 1: I had previously mentioned that I was in summer school at college. I had also mentioned that I had finals today, and so I was studying for them. Reason # 2: I was having difficulty logging into last night. So I gave up trying some time last night. To my surprise, this morning after getting back from my first final, I found that I could log in. Reason # 3: This is perhaps the **most** important reason of the three. I had received a particularly disheartening review after I had already submitted Chapter 6. My note at the end of Chapter 6 commented on how I had only received positive comments at that stage and that I hoped I didn't just jinx myself by saying that. Well, as it turns out, I did. This review just blew my confidence out the window. This is not to say that I am an assertive and outgoing individual as it is because I am not. I realize that I am not going to please everybody and that I will never be able to please everybody. I just thought people would be considerate and nice since after all this is my **first** fanfic. So much for those silly thoughts I suppose. I could say that only review if you have something nice to say. Or you can criticize my fanfic but only if you do so using constructive criticism (i.e. what you liked and how you feel I can improve) yet I know even that will be in vain because even if I ask that of you, you are in no way obligated to do what I ask of you so we are right back to square one. Anyways, I don't know if I'll be able to get another update in until Sunday as I am going home to my parents this weekend. The problem with that is that at home, there are four people (me included) and two computers. Not to mention that two of the said people (me **not** included) spend practically the entire day on the two said computers. So yeah I might not be able to update again until Sunday which is the day I come back to my apartment. Thanks to everyone who has read my story and enjoyed it. Thanks to everyone who has reviewed my fanfic and has had positive things to say. I know I lack the experience of some of the more seasoned writers here at so if you don't like my story, it's simple, don't read it!


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers.

**Dissension within the Ranks**

Chapter 8

Cruger and Kat had made their way to the command center. They were trying to figure out what had caused the alarms to go off. They suspected Grumm had sent a monster or krybots or something to wreak havoc on the city, so they were scanning Newtech City for any disturbances. Just then, the guard had arrived at the command center.

"Sir, I know what caused the alarms to go off," the guard said.

"Well come on! Out with it!" Cruger yelled.

"A prisoner escaped sir," the guard answered.

"A prisoner? Which one?" Cruger asked.

"Jack. That's not all sir," the guard said.

"Go on. What else have you to report?" Cruger questioned.

"Jack somehow managed to get into Syd's cell and he raped her!" the guard exclaimed.

"Oh my God!" Kat exclaimed.

"He did what? Wait, how do you even know this?" Cruger asked.

"Because I saw it take place," the guard responded.

"You did nothing to stop this?" Cruger asked enraged.

"At first no because I was in too much shock as to what I was witnessing. However, I eventually shot Jack with his own civilian blaster," the guard stated.

"Eventually?" Cruger asked even more furious.

"Yes eventually. Once I had gotten over my shock," the guard answered.

"Where are they now?" Cruger asked.

"They're both still in Syd's cell sir," the guard replied.

"I thought you said you shot Jack?" Cruger inquired.

"I did," the guard answered.

"So he's no longer raping her correct?" Cruger asked.

"That is correct sir," the guard answered.

Kat had fetched some cadets and went to Syd's cell to clean up Jack and Syd as well as to run some tests on Syd.

XXXXXXXXXX

While Kat was doing that, Cruger made an announcement over the intercom.

"All cadets, there is no more cause for alarm. We have pinpointed the problem. Power Rangers please report to the command center immediately," Cruger stated.

Within moments, Z, Bridge, and Sam were in the command center.

"What I'm about to tell you is very shocking," Cruger said.

"Does this have to do with why the alarms went off?" Z asked.

"Yes it does," Cruger answered.

"What is it sir?" Sam asked.

"Jack had escaped prison and raped Syd," Cruger said.

"Oh my God!" Bridge, Sam, and Z said in unison.

"I don't know what I'm going to do with Jack. This kind of behavior is not tolerated around here. I don't know how else I'm going to punish him. I've already taken away his morpher and put him in prison," Cruger said.

"Is Syd ok?" Bridge asked.

"Kat and some cadets are checking on her as we speak," Cruger replied.

"What was he thinking?" Z asked.

"How did he escape?" Sam asked.

"Apparently, he phased through the cell door and then phased through Syd's cell door," Cruger answered.

"Why would he do something like that?" Bridge asked in disbelief.

"I don't know. This has been a long couple of days. Dismissed!" Cruger ordered.

Sam, Z, and Bridge left the command center.

XXXXXXXXXX

On Grumm's ship, Giganis ( Cadet Dru Harrington's Tangarian form) had arrived after just recently being freed from prison by an army of krybots led by an orange head.

"Thank you Grumm for getting me out of there! How ever can I repay you?" Giganis asked.

"Well, I do have something in mind and it involves your old friend," Grumm answered.

"My 'old friend'? You mean Sky?" Giganis questioned.

"Yes. It seems Cruger has recovered Sky's body after the explosion. My guess is that Cruger has him on life support in an attempt to revive him," Grumm said.

"What exactly do you want me to do?" Giganis asked.

"I think it's time the two of you join forces again," Grumm commented.

"I see. I'm on it," Giganis said.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back at the Academy, Z, Bridge, and Sam were in the recreation room.

"I can't believe Jack would do something like that!" Z exclaimed.

"Poor Syd," Bridge said.

"I thought you'd be happy Z," Sam remarked.

"Happy? How could I be happy at a time like this?" Z asked.

"Well, since Jack raped Syd, Syd will have no choice but to be with Jack because the baby that Syd will soon be carrying will be Jack's and so you will no longer have any competition," Sam explained.

"How can you say that Sam?" Z asked.

"Oh please like you really care about what happened to Syd!" Sam exclaimed.

"Of course I do!" Z shouted back.

"Yeah right. You probably think it serves her right for attacking you!" Sam retorted.

"Sam, Z, knock it off," Bridge said trying to be the mediator.

"It wasn't my fault. Sparky the night light over there started it!" Z remarked.

"Oh that's real mature Z," Sam said sarcastically.

"Like you would know anything about being mature," Z snapped back.

"Cut it out! Would one of you like to tell me what's going on between you two?" Bridge asked.

There was silence.

XXXXXXXXXXX

By now, Kat had Syd brought into the infirmary and she had finished running tests on her. Like Sky, Syd was in a hospital gown.

"How is she?" Cruger asked.

"I don't know if she's asleep or unconscious," Kat answered.

"What did the tests show?" Cruger asked.

"It's as we feared. The guard wasn't lying. All the signs of rape are there," Kat replied.

"What are we going to do about Jack?" Cruger asked.

"I don't know. There's not much worse we can do to him besides put him in prison," Kat responded.

"What is happening to my rangers?" Cruger asked.

"I don't know Doggie. I really don't know," Kat answered.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back in the prison section of the Academy, Jack came to his senses in his prison cell. He found himself with a clean uniform on and on the bed in his cell.

"Ha! They didn't learn their lesson last time! I can still…" Jack started to say before finding that his hands had been handcuffed.

"Okay never mind then," Jack thought to himself. Then Jack thought about Syd. "I warned you Syd. I told you that I'll take whatever I can get, and that you were the only thing I can get. Soon, you will be carrying my baby and then you will have no choice but to be with me. I told you that once I was through with you Sky would be the last thing on your mind!"

XXXXXXXXXX

Back in the recreation room, Bridge was still waiting for an explanation.

"Will one of you tell me what is going on between you two?" Bridge repeated.

"Z broke my heart that's what!" Sam shouted.

"Oh yeah! That's real mature Sam. Blame it on me," Z said sarcastically.

"Well I didn't break my own heart!" Sam retorted.

"Wait, do you even have a heart? I mean you're a freaking ball of light!" Z remarked.

"Of course I have a heart, and you broke it!" Sam replied.

"Whine, whine, whine is that all you can do?" Z asked.

"Z, enough!" Bridge said.

"Why are you taking his side?" Z snapped.

"I'm not taking anyone's side. Need I remind you that we're a team, and I'm trying to keep it that way," Bridge stated.

"Yeah right! Like we could be a team. Our leader attacked two rangers and raped a third. Our pink ranger attacked me. Yeah that's quite some team we have here," Z remarked sarcastically.

Bridge had enough on his mind without having to deal with the quarrel between the yellow ranger and the omega ranger. "Could things get any worse around here?" Bridge asked himself. "Let's recap. Sky nearly got himself killed because of me. Jack and Syd were thrown in prison and had their morphers taken away. Jack raped Syd while in prison. Now Z and Sam are at each other's throats!"

"Sarcasm, sarcasm, sarcasm is that all you can say?" Sam asked Z sarcastically.

"Haha. You're so funny. Not!" Z replied.

Bridge had enough. He left the recreation room not caring if Z and Sam were still going at it.

XXXXXXXXXXX

The alarms went off and red lights were flashing. Kat and Cruger rushed to the command center to see what the disturbance was.

Moments later Kat was on the intercom. "Rangers, please report to the command center immediately. I repeat rangers please report to the command center immediately!"

It wasn't long before Sam, Z, and Bridge were in the command center.

"There are four separate attacks in Newtech City. The four of us will split up and go to each of the four locations," Cruger stated.

"S.P.D. Emergency!" they shouted in unison.

Lurking in the air vent above the infirmary was Giganis.

XXXXXXXXXX

At the location Z had went to was an about a dozen or so krybots and a blue head.

"Get her!" the blue head commanded.

Z pulled out her Patrol Baton and slashed an oncoming krybot in the chest. A second krybot threw a punch at Z. Z caught its fist and flipped it on its back. Two krybots had surrounded Z and both had a laser instead of an arm. They fired. Z did a backflip and the krybots ended up shooting each other.

XXXXXXXXXXX

At the location Bridge had went to was a dozen krybots with an orange head leading them.

"Attack!" ordered the orange head.

Bridge formed his Delta Max Striker and blasted the closest krybot. Another krybot attempted to sneak up behind Bridge, but Bridge caught its sword just as it was about to connect. Bridge elbowed the krybot in the stomach. He followed it up with a leg sweep. Bridge blasted another approaching krybot. Another krybot threw a punch. Bridge sidestepped. It threw another punch. Bridge ducked. It attempted a kick. Bridge caught its leg and flung the krybot into another one.

XXXXXXXXXXX

At the location Sam had went to was three blue heads.

"Omega Morpher blaster mode!" Sam said.

Sam punched the ground knocking all three blue heads to the ground. They got back to their feet and fired their lasers at the omega ranger.

Sam went flying back several feet and landed on his back.

XXXXXXXXXX

At the location Cruger went to was three orange heads.

"Time for a shock!" all three said.

Cruger was nailed by three waves of orange lightning. He fell to the ground.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back in the infirmary, Giganis had come down from the air vent and was standing at Sky's bedside.

"Stop right there!" a voice shouted.

Giganis turned around to see the pink ranger.

"I thought Grumm said the pink and red rangers were in prison," Giganis thought to himself.

"S.P.D. Emergency!" Syd shouted.

Syd pulled out her Patrol Baton and charged Giganis. Giganis caught the sword as it was about to hit him. He then sent a stream of electricity up the weapon and shocked the pink ranger. She convulsed for a bit then fell to the ground. Giganis then turned his attention back to Sky. The next thing Giganis knew, he was face down on the ground.

"Leave him alone!" Kat yelled.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back at Z's location, she took out her morpher and punched a few buttons after saying, "I hope you like fiery, confined spaces!" The remaining normal krybots were trapped in Z's morpher and erased.

"Well, well, well. I guess that just leaves you and me," the blue head said.

"Thank you Captain Obvious!" Z said sarcastically.

The blue head fired its laser. Z rolled out of the way. Z formed her Delta Max Striker and blasted the blue head knocking it off its feet.

"You'll pay for that yellow ranger!" the blue head said while getting up to its feet.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Back at Bridge's location, Bridge just realized something.

"Oh crap! I forgot to count how many krybots I've destroyed! Was it 4? Or maybe it was 5? Wait! There were 12 to begin with and there are one, two, three, four, five, six, seven left. Ok, let's see. Twelve minus five. Borrow the one and…" Bridge started to say before a krybot took a swing at him.

"Oh screw it! I'll just start over!" Bridge said. He sidestepped the punch and blasted it with his Delta Max Striker. "One!"

He detached his Patrol Baton from his Patrol Grip. He slashed one krybot. "Two!" He slashed another. "Three!" Another. "Four!" He swept the legs out of two krybots. "Five, seven! Wait did I miss one? Oh well. I'll just start over!" He slashed the remaining krybot. "One!"

XXXXXXXXXX

Back at Sam's location, Sam was picking himself off the ground.

"That does it! Omega Morpher fully charged!" Sam yelled.

One of the blue heads had made its way over to the omega ranger. The omega ranger punched it sending it flying backwards several feet. It landed on the ground short circuited.

XXXXXXXXXX

At Cruger's location, Cruger was avoiding attack after attack from the three orange heads. After they had knocked Cruger to the ground, they relentlessly attacked him. Cruger had been successful in not getting hit, but he hadn't been able to get a hit in himself either.

"Shadow Saber power up!" Cruger shouted. Blue flames lit up the ground. Cruger slashed one orange head. It fell to the ground and exploded.

"Alright, who's next?" Cruger asked.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back at the infirmary, Giganis was picking himself off the ground. He turned to see his attacker.

"Well, look what we have here?" Giganis said. He changed one of his hands to a sniper. "Come here kitty!" He fired a shot.

Kat ran up the wall and did a backflip avoiding the attack. She then leapt at Giganis. Giganis was one step ahead of her though and he blasted her with the sniper before she could get to him. Kat fell to the ground in a heap. Giganis walked over to the life support machine and pulled the plug.

"No!" came a shout.

Giganis turned around and saw the pink ranger was on her feet.

"Grr…don't you rangers ever stay down?" Giganis yelled.

"Delta Max Striker!" Syd shouted forming her weapon. "Fire!"

Giganis leapt out of the way and the blast nailed Sky.

"Oh my God! No!" Syd shouted in horror running over to Sky.

Seeing that Syd was too distracted to pay much attention to him, Giganis aimed his sniper at the pink ranger and fired. Syd fell to the ground demorphed and unconscious.

Giganis unplugged Sky from all the machines. Then, he scooped Sky up in his arms.

"Old friend, you are coming with me!" Giganis said before teleporting out of the Academy.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back at Z's location, the blue head fired its laser. Z somersaulted out of the way.

"R.I.C. you're on!" Z shouted. She threw up the bone. R.I.C. caught it in his mouth and transformed into the Canine Cannon.

"Uh oh," the blue head said.

"Canine Cannon. Fire!" Z yelled.

The blast engulfed the blue head and shattered it to pieces.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back at Bridge's location, Bridge was getting made fun of by the orange head.

"Haha! You count worse than a 5 year old!" the orange head remarked laughing.

"That does it! R.I.C. you're on!" Bridge said.

He realized he didn't have the bone with him.

"Damn it! Who the hell took the bone?" Bridge asked.

"Time for a shock!" the orange head said sending orange lightning Bridge's way.

Bridge fell to the ground. He was helped to his feet. He looked and saw Z.

"Looking for this?" Z asked showing Bridge the bone.

"There it is! Let's do it!" Bridge said. He threw up the bone.

"Canine Cannon, fire!" Z and Bridge shouted.

"Time for a shock!" the orange head said sending orange lightning to meet the blast.

Now, it was a battle of will. Who wanted it more? Although the Canine Cannon could be used by one ranger, it's true strength is reached when rangers use it together. However, even with two rangers, the orange head appeared to be winning. The orange lightning was three quarters of the way there. Just then they felt someone else grab onto the Canine Cannon. It was Jack.

_Flashback_

"I've gotta help the others! They could be in danger!" Jack thought to himself. Then he looked down to his hands and saw the handcuffs. "I got it!" Jack exclaimed out loud. He used his powers of molecularization to phase his hands through the handcuffs. Then, he phased his way out of the cell. The alarms would have gone off, but they were still going off due to the four separate attacks on Newtech City. Jack made his way to the command center. He looked on a viewing screen and saw there were four separate attacks.

"Where's my morpher?" Jack thought to himself. "The lab! It's gotta be there!"

Jack headed to the lab and found it sitting on Kat's desk.

"S.P.D. Emergency!" Jack shouted. He turned into the pink ranger. "Oops. My bad! Power down!" He put the morpher back on the desk and picked up the other one. "Let's try this again. S.P.D. Emergency!" He transformed into the red ranger. "There, much better. Hold on guys, I'm coming!"

_End Flashback_

"Jack, what are you doing here?" Z asked.

"Yeah, how did you get out?" Bridge asked.

"Come on, do you really think Cruger could keep me in a place like that?" Jack asked.

"Well yeah that's kind of the whole point of prison," Bridge said.

"I used my powers. Anyways, let's take care of this fool. Full power guys!" Jack commanded.

With the addition of Jack's powers, the yellow, green, and red rangers blasted the orange head with the Canine Cannon and the orange head shattered into pieces.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Back at Sam's location. Sam had an idea.

"Omega morpher hyper mode!" Sam shouted. He nailed both blue heads with swift punches and moments later, they fell to the ground short circuited.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Back at Cruger's location, the remaining two orange heads had Cruger surrounded.

"We've got you now!" one orange head said.

"Time for a shock!" they said in unison.

Cruger dove out of the way and the two orange heads destroyed each other.

"Rangers, are you ok?" Cruger said speaking into his morpher.

"Yeah, we're fine!" Jack answered.

"Jack, what the hell are you doing out of prison?" Cruger yelled.

"It's ok Cruger, he saved Bridge and me!" Z replied.

"He did?" Cruger asked shocked.

"Yes I did. We're a team and they needed me!" Jack said.

"Ok, well I'll meet you back at the Academy," Cruger said.

XXXXXXXXXXX

When they arrived at the Academy, they headed to the command center only to find it empty.

"I wonder where everyone is?" Bridge asked.

"I have a bad feeling about this," Z commented.

"Yeah something's not right," Jack added.

"Come on. Let's check the infirmary," Cruger said.

They made their way to the infirmary and their mouths dropped open at what they saw in front of them.

"Oh my God! What the hell happened here?" Cruger yelled. Cruger kneeled beside Kat and put two fingers to her neck.

"Is she…" Bridge started to say.

"No, she's still breathing," Cruger answered before Bridge could finish.

Z made her way over to Syd. She checked for a pulse.

"Syd's still breathing too," Z said.

"Guys, wasn't Sky supposed to be in here too?" Jack asked.

All of their eyes turned to Sky's bed where he was supposed to be and found it empty.

To Be Continued…

Note: Wow! Chapter 8! I had no idea my first story would be so long! I told you I probably wouldn't get another chapter up until today. Tomorrow I start summer session two at college. I'm so not going to have a summer. This past weekend where I went home is probably about as much of a summer as I'm going to get this year. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Thanks to everyone who has read my fanfic and enjoyed it. Thanks to everyone who has reviewed and had positive things to say. Please be nice people because this is my first fanfic.


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers. Oh, and uh not much is known about Grumm's powers, so I took the liberty of giving him powers based on what I have seen in the actual episodes that have aired.

**Dissension within the Ranks**

Chapter 9

Back at Grumm's ship, Giganis arrived carrying Sky in his arms.

"He's in a hospital gown? Are you telling me that you didn't even bother to grab his morpher or uniform?" snarled Grumm.

"You never mentioned that!" snapped Giganis.

"You idiot! It was a given! He's no good to us powerless and in a hospital gown!" yelled Grumm.

"Well maybe you should've said so then!" shouted Giganis.

"Do not take that tone of voice with me or I will have you vaporized! Good help is so hard to find these days! If you want something done right, do it yourself," Grumm said.

"I could go back there and get his uniform and morpher my emperor," Giganis said.

"Don't bother!" Grumm exclaimed. He looked at Sky and transformed himself into his likeness. "I'll go!"

XXXXXXXXXXX

Back in the infirmary, Kat and Syd were on separate hospital beds.

"Are they going to be ok Commander?" Bridge asked.

"Yeah I think so. However, if Kat wasn't an alien, she'd already be dead. If Syd wasn't morphed, she too would have been dead," Cruger replied.

"What are we going to do about Sky?" Z asked.

"Yeah, we can't just abandon him," Bridge added.

"We won't, but right now we can't do anything for him without knowing where he is located," Cruger responded.

"I wonder what exactly happened here." Jack asked.

"Jack, may I have a word with you? Alone," Cruger said.

Bridge and Z left the infirmary.

"What is it sir?" Jack asked.

"I see right through your little plan," Cruger stated.

"What plan?" Jack asked.

"You think by coming to the aid of Bridge and Z, I will forgive you for everything you have done," Cruger answered.

"No, I don't think that," Jack replied.

"Good because I'm not. Your recent behavior is unacceptable. You are a ranger and a red ranger at that. You are supposed to be a role model to all the other cadets and staff here at the Academy," Cruger explained.

"Look I know I messed up, but…"Jack began to say.

"Messed up? That's an understatement!" Cruger remarked.

"I wouldn't have done what I did if I wasn't in prison," Jack finished saying.

"Oh please! Don't give me that bullshit! Need I remind you what got you in trouble in the first place? You attacked Bridge and Sky that's what! You did that before you were even in prison so don't give me that 'I wouldn't have done what I did if I wasn't in prison,' crap!" Cruger snarled.

Jack was silent. He knew Cruger had a point.

"Look I know I can't make it up to you, I know that I may never be able to make it up to you, but at least let me try," Jack pleaded.

"Let you try? Let you try! Do you actually take me for a fool?" Cruger yelled.

"I attacked Bridge and Sky because I was jealous! I've always been overprotective of Z! Is that what you wanted to hear?" Jack shouted.

"Jealous? Jealous! There's no room for jealousy here!" Cruger snapped.

"I know you always tell us not to let our emotions cloud our judgment, but I couldn't help myself," Jack said.

"Maybe if you had a little more self-control, you could! How do you explain what you did to Syd?" Cruger asked.

"I told you if I hadn't been in prison, that wouldn't have happened," Jack answered.

"It's your own damn fault you were in prison in the first place!" Cruger yelled.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Over in the recreation room, Bridge and Z were seated in silence.

"We should've got back sooner," Bridge said.

"Come on Bridge, it wasn't our fault. We had a city to protect," Z replied.

"That's twice I've failed Sky," Bridge said.

"Bridge don't say that. None of this is your fault do you hear me?" Z asked.

"What if he wasn't even alive yet when he was disconnected from life support?" Bridge asked.

"Don't say that. Quit thinking negative thoughts. For all we know he could have been alive when he was disconnected from life support," Z answered.

"I can't believe Jack," Bridge commented.

"What do you mean?" Z asked.

"He thinks he can make everything right by coming to our aid in battle," Bridge remarked.

"He cares about us," Z said.

"Really? Did he care about me when he attacked me? Did he care about Sky when he attacked him? Did he care about Syd when he raped her? No, I don't think so!" Bridge exclaimed.

"Look I know Jack messed up, but I sincerely believe he is trying to make it up to us. I really do. I've known him longer than anybody so I would know," Z said.

"How can you forgive him so easily? Look what he's done to our team!" Bridge commented.

"I forgive him because that's what friends do. That's what families do," Z explained.

"Family? Friends? Ha, you've got to be kidding!" Bridge exclaimed.

"You know I never thought I'd hear this coming from you. I thought you were always the one to be the mediator. Whatever happened to that?" Z retorted.

"Jack frightens me Z! It's kind of hard to be the mediator when the leader of your team is a loose cannon and you never know when he's gonna go off!" Bridge replied.

Z sighed in frustration. She decided this argument was going nowhere so she stayed quiet.

XXXXXXXXXX

In the room that Sky and Bridge shared, Grumm (as Sky) was packing Sky's things. He took down Sky's uniforms from their hangers. He took socks and boxers from Sky's dresser. He packed the shoes that were on the floor of Sky's closet. Lastly, he grabbed Sky's morpher off his nightstand. Then, he teleported out of there.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back in the infirmary, Cruger and Jack were still going at it. Since both are extremely stubborn individuals, their argument still continued.

"You want to talk about mistakes? How about the mistakes you've made? Let's see there was the time when you went to Kyoto and left Newtech City defenseless which led to Grumm stealing a supply of iridium. Then there was the time when you and Kat got into an argument which led to her being kidnapped by General Benaag. What else is there? Oh yeah, the time you sent A-squad on a suicide mission and need I remind you that we haven't heard from them since! Lastly, you failed your people, your wife, and your planet of Sirius by losing to Grumm!" Jack remarked.

"That was out of line!" Cruger yelled. He unsheathed his Shadow Saber and slashed Jack in the chest. Blood oozed out of Jack's chest. Jack put a hand to his chest and saw the blood.

"Fine! You want to play like that, then let's play!" Jack said. He took out his civilian blaster and fired at Cruger. Cruger was knocked backwards into the wall of the infirmary.

"Stop it!" a female voice shouted.

Jack and Cruger looked over to see that Kat was awake.

"That is enough!" Kat yelled.

Cruger put his Shadow Saber back in its case and Jack put his civilian blaster back on his belt.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back at Grumm's ship, Grumm had just returned from the Academy. He had transformed himself back into Grumm.

"Now, Broodwing do you have any idea how we are going to control Sky's mind?" Grumm asked the mercenary.

"I have the perfect thing. A little pricy, but worth every dime!" Broodwing answered.

"Out with it! What is it?" Grumm yelled.

"A mind controlling agent that is administered through the bloodstream via a shot. Its dosage requires it to be administered through the skin every eight hours," Broodwing replied.

"Every eight hours? Can't you just use a bigger dosage?" Grumm asked.

"If you want to kill him yes," Broodwing answered.

"How much do they cost?" Grumm asked.

"Twenty-five grand per shot," Broodwing responded.

"Twenty-five grand?" Grumm yelled.

"Well, do you want it or not?" Broodwing asked.

"Fine, I'll take three of them for now," Grumm said handing Broodwing seventy-five grand.

Broodwing handed Grumm three shots.

"Morgana, wake the newest addition to our army up, but not until you give him this," Grumm said handing her a shot.

Since Giganis had returned with Sky, Sky was placed in a cell. Morgana walked over to Sky's cell and inserted a key. She unlocked the door and entered. She then stabbed the needle into Sky's forearm. She left the cell only to return later with a bucket of water. She threw it on him.

"What? Where am I? What happened?" Sky asked confused.

Giganis entered holding Sky's uniform and morpher.

"Here, get dressed," Giganis said.

"Yeah, you have work to do," Morgana added.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Back at the infirmary, Syd was coming to her senses.

"Syd, you're awake!" Kat exclaimed running over to her.

"Oh my God! Sky! Where's Sky?" Syd yelled.

"He's gone," Cruger answered.

"Gone? You mean like dead?" Syd asked with a look of horror on her face.

"No, I meant he wasn't here when we arrived. We found you and Kat unconscious on the floor," Cruger replied.

"No, Giganis must've taken him!" Kat and Syd said in unison.

"Did you just say Giganis?" Cruger asked.

"As in Cadet Dru Harrington?" Jack added.

"Yes," Kat answered.

"How did he escape?" Jack asked.

"We don't know, but he came for Sky. Who knows what he'll do to him!" Kat replied.

"Dru's back?" Z asked.

Bridge and Z had made their way to the infirmary after they had heard yelling from that direction.

"I'm afraid so," Syd replied.

"This is not good," Bridge commented.

Just then, the alarms went off. Kat, Cruger, Jack, Bridge, Z, and Syd ran to the command center. When they got there, they found Sam waiting for them. They looked at the viewing screen and what they saw made their jaws drop.

"Is that Sky?" Bridge asked pointing to the blue ranger on the viewing screen.

"Oh my God! Yes, he's okay!" Syd shrieked.

"Who's that with him?" Z asked.

"Giganis," Cruger answered.

"That can't be good," Bridge commented.

"Rangers, go!" Cruger ordered.

"Uh, Commander, I kind of need my morpher in order to do anything," Syd said.

Boom came running into the command center with Syd's morpher.

"Here you go Syd," Boom said handing the morpher to Syd.

"Ready?" Jack asked.

"Ready!" Z, Syd, Sam, and Bridge replied.

"S.P.D. emergency!" they shouted in unison.

They were on their way.

XXXXXXXXXX

Moments later, they arrived on the scene.

"Sky, you're alright?" Z squealed.

"S.P.D. emergency!" Sky shouted transforming himself into ranger form.

"I'm so sorry, but soldier boy's allegiance lies elsewhere now!" Giganis commented.

"What do you mean? What did you do to him?" Bridge shouted.

Sky formed his Delta Max Striker and shot Bridge sending him flying backwards into a wall.

"Bridge!" Syd shouted.

"Come on Sky. Don't do this! We don't want to hurt you!" Z begged.

"Too bad because I have no problem hurting you!" Sky said before blasting Z with his Delta Max Striker. She flew backwards several feet before landing hard on her back.

"Z!" Jack shouted.

Giganis transformed one of his arms into a sniper and blasted Jack. Jack dropped to his knees then fell to the ground demorphed.

"This is too easy," Sky commented.

"Sky, you have to stop this!" Syd shouted.

Sky aimed his Delta Max Striker at Syd, but then he heard, "Omega Morpher, blaster mode!" The next thing Sky knew, he was on the ground.

"Guys, do it now!" Sam yelled.

Syd threw up the bone. R.I.C. transformed into the Canine Cannon.

"Canine Cannon fire!" Bridge, Z, and Syd shouted.

"We can combine our powers too!" Giganis said.

Giganis fired his sniper and Sky fired his Delta Max Striker. The two blasts combined into one and met the blast from the Canine Cannon. This resulted in an explosion. When the smoke had cleared, Syd, Z, Bridge, and Sam were demorphed. There was no sign of Sky or Giganis.

"They got away!" Jack shouted pounding his fist into the ground.

To Be Continued…

Note: There you have it. Another chapter. Just so you know, the "disheartening" review I was referring to said and I quote, "maybe people don't review because your story sucks. ever thought of that?" So no I wasn't referring to you KendrixAimeeOliver. Beautiful-Me89, sky's girl forever, sye04, KendrixAimeeOliver, NinjaStorm4Life, and monkay-pooh thank you for your support. It really means a lot to me. Probably more than you know. I'll try to update soon. I can't guarantee anything though because I am in summer school, so even though I'd love to do nothing but write fanfics all day, I have schoolwork to worry about.


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers.

**Dissension within the Ranks**

Chapter 10

The next morning, there was a meeting taking place in the command center between the rangers, Kat, and Cruger.

"I've given it plenty of thought and I have decided that Sky needs to be either confined or destroyed," Cruger stated.

"Commander, are you serious?" Bridge asked in disbelief.

"That's a little much don't you think?" Z added.

"He's no different than any other monster of Grumm's. In fact he's even more dangerous because of all the knowledge he has of S.P.D.," Cruger explained.

"He's one of us though!" Syd exclaimed.

"You're right he **is** different than any other monster of Grumm's in that they are evil and Sky is not!" Bridge remarked.

"Sir, it's obvious that Grumm has done something to Sky," Jack said.

"Nevertheless he is still a threat to S.P.D.," Cruger replied.

"I can't believe you are saying this! Whatever happened to Sky being like your own son? Would you confine or kill your own son?" Kat snapped.

The rangers exchanged glances with each other like "Did she just say what I thought she said?"

"If it means the city will be safe, if it means S.P.D. will be safe, then yes I would," Cruger answered.

"Sir, Sky saved my life as well as Bridge's life. Now it's time for me to return the favor," Z said.

"The same goes for me," Bridge added.

"I've told you time and time again that letting your emotions get the best of you gives the enemy an added advantage and that is exactly what you are doing now. You may think I'm heartless but I'm approaching this using my head not my heart," Cruger said.

"You've also suggested not abandoning Sky, but isn't that what you're doing now?" Kat snapped.

"Enough! Damn it! Know your role! I am the Commander! I make the decisions around here not all of you! If I order you to confine or destroy Sky, then that is exactly what you will do no questions asked! Do I make myself clear?" Cruger yelled.

"Yes sir," the rangers answered through clenched teeth.

"Alright then, dismissed," Cruger said.

The rangers left the command center.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Back at Grumm's ship, Morgana was searching for Sky.

"Damn it! Where did he go?" Morgana asked out loud.

"What was that? Who are you talking about?" Grumm asked.

Morgana didn't realize that Grumm was behind her and was startled.

"It's nothing," Morgana answered nervously.

"Hey, weren't you supposed to have given Sky his next shot by now?" Grumm asked.

"Funny you should mention that. The thing is when I went to Sky's cell, he was gone," Morgana answered.

"What?" Grumm yelled.

"I've been looking all over for him, but I haven't been able to find him," Morgana said.

"Then I suggest you stop talking and start looking!" Grumm yelled.

Morgana ran off in search of Sky.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sky was at Piggy's café.

"It's S.P.D.! Run!" shouted an alien.

All the aliens that were eating at the café ran for cover.

"How many times do I have to tell you not to come here!" Piggy shouted.

"It's just me Piggy," Sky replied.

"Oh, where's everyone else?" Piggy asked.

"I don't know. Probably looking for me or maybe they don't care and aren't looking for me at all," Sky answered.

"What brings you by?" Piggy asked.

"Nothing much, but if the other rangers come here looking for me, tell them that I'm ok," Sky said before leaving.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back at the Academy, the rangers were in the recreation room.

"Man, I can't believe Cruger!" Z exclaimed.

"Guys, I don't know if I can do it," Bridge commented.

"Do what?" Syd asked.

"I don't know if I can take part in confining or destroying Sky," Bridge replied.

"Yeah he's not a monster, he's a human," Jack added.

"You guys have to do what Cruger asked. He is the commander," Sam said.

"You guys thought I was bad when I took advantage of my position," Jack remarked sarcastically.

"Hello, you were!" Syd responded.

"Yeah well I didn't order a teammate to be destroyed or confined," Jack replied.

"Guys, this is my fault, I should've stopped Giganis in the infirmary!" Syd exclaimed.

"I know how you feel Syd. I still feel responsible for the incident at the warehouse," Bridge commented.

"You don't know how I feel! You have no idea how I feel!" Syd snapped.

"You feel guilty. Just like I felt and just like I still feel," Bridge replied.

"Look Syd, I know this probably isn't the best time, but there's something you should know," Jack said.

"What?" Syd asked.

"Do you guys mind letting us talk in private?" Jack asked.

"You sure that's such a good…" Bridge started to say before Z elbowed him in the ribs.

Sam, Z, and Bridge left the recreation room.

"What do you want to talk about?" Syd asked.

"I did a horrible thing," Jack answered.

"Go on," Syd said.

"I don't know how to say this to you, but I think I'm the one who should rather than you hearing it from someone else," Jack started to say.

"Quit beating around the bush and just tell me!" Syd snapped.

"Yesterday, I raped you," Jack said.

"You didn't!" Syd replied.

"I'm sorry Syd," Jack said putting his hand on her shoulder.

"You're sorry? You're sorry! What the hell is your problem? You have ruined my life! How could you?" Syd yelled brushing Jack's hand off her shoulder and storming out of the recreation room in tears.

Sam, Z, and Bridge were walking in the hallway when Syd came darting past them in the direction of her room.

"Oh God, Jack told her!" Bridge exclaimed. He ran to check up on Syd.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sky knocked on the door of a two story fairly large house.

An elderly man of about sixty years of age answered the door. He had gray hair and a gray mustache. He was wearing a suit, a tie, black dress pants, and black dress shoes.

"Master Sky? It's so good to see you! Come on in!" the elderly man answered.

"Please William, just call me Sky. The only person you called Master was my…my…" Sky stuttered.

Seeing how Sky was having a hard time saying it, William finished the sentence for him "your father, yes I know."

"Yeah, well he's no longer alive, so you don't have to call anyone Master anymore," Sky said frowning.

"Come on in. We'll talk in the living room," William said.

Sky entered through the door and followed William to the living room.

"Would you like anything to drink?" William asked.

"Some water would be nice thank you," Sky answered.

William left to fetch some water from the kitchen. He returned shortly with two bottles of water.

"So why are you still here?" Sky asked.

"Excuse me," William replied.

"I mean you worked for my dad as a butler yet my dad died a few years ago and you're still here," Sky said.

"Yes well your father wasn't the only one I worked for," William responded.

"Come on William, you don't have to be my butler," Sky said.

"Well I think I owe it to your father to look out for you," William said smiling.

"Hey, you don't mind if I stay here for awhile do you?" Sky asked.

"Of course not, but if you don't mind me asking, what brings you by?" William asked looking at the duffel bag around Sky's shoulder.

"People are looking for me and I need somewhere safe to stay where nobody would suspect me to be," Sky answered.

"Aren't you supposed to be at the Academy?" William asked.

"S.P.D. is part of the people looking for me, and I can't let them find me," Sky replied.

"Why? What happened?" William asked.

"It's a long story," Sky commented.

"I'm a good listener and I have nowhere to be," William responded smiling.

Sky began telling William what had happened over the past few days.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back at the command center, Kat and Cruger were going at it.

"I can't believe you're ordering them to destroy or confine Sky!" Kat yelled.

"If you had stopped Giganis from taking Sky in the first place none of this would've happened!" Cruger shouted back.

"Don't you dare blame this on me Doggie! I tried stopping Giganis. He was too powerful for me! Besides, I'm not a ranger like you are! I can defend myself, but I lack the training!" Kat yelled.

"Damn it Kat! Can't you see I'm doing what's best for S.P.D.?" Cruger asked.

"What's best for S.P.D.? How is this what's best for S.P.D.?" Kat retorted.

"Sky is a threat to the Academy!" Cruger shouted.

"I can't believe this! You're the commander! You are supposed to be an example and a role model to all the other rangers, cadets, and staff here at the Academy! Sound familiar? It should because I practically quoted what you said to Jack!" Kat fired back.

"How dare you!" Cruger yelled.

"You claim you care about Sky, but how is killing him caring about him?" Kat asked.

"Get out of my sight now!" Cruger shouted.

Kat did as she was asked.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Syd, open up!" Bridge shouted knocking on Syd's door.

"Go away! I don't want to talk!" Syd hollered back.

"Come on, it's me Bridge!" Bridge said.

"I know that!" Syd shouted.

"Don't push me away," Bridge said.

"Just leave!" Syd yelled.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Back in the recreation room, Z found Jack sitting on the couch.

"Do you want to come with me to look for Sky?" Z asked.

"What do you have in mind?" Jack replied.

"Well, maybe Piggy has talked to Sky or at least knows something," Z answered.

"Ok, let's go," Jack said.

XXXXXXXXXXX

At Piggy's café, Morgana and Giganis were questioning Piggy.

"Have you seen the blue ranger today?" Morgana asked.

"Yes. He stopped by earlier today," Piggy answered.

"Did he say anything to you?" Giganis questioned.

"He told me to tell the other rangers that he's ok if I see them," Piggy replied.

"Did he say where he was going?" Morgana asked.

"No he didn't," Piggy responded.

"Are you sure?" Giganis asked.

"Positive," Piggy said.

"Come on Giganis, let's go," Morgana said.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Back at Sky's old house, Sky had just finished telling his story to William.

"So you see, I can't go back to the Academy," Sky said.

"I think you can but you just don't want to," William commented.

"How can I go back? I'm a wanted criminal now!" Sky exclaimed.

"No, you're a power ranger. You belong with your team," William remarked.

"I told you though they're not a team because of me," Sky said looking down at the ground.

"What happened isn't your fault. The things Syd and Jack did that got them in prison weren't your fault. As for your attacking them, your mind was being controlled," William said.

"I feel bad coming here. I'm probably putting you in danger by staying here," Sky stated.

"Maybe you should talk to your father out back," William suggested.

Sky nodded and then headed out to the backyard. He knelt down beside a tombstone. Sky's father had been buried in the backyard instead of at a cemetery because he had requested that was where he wanted to be laid to rest.

"Dad, what should I do?" Sky asked. "Grumm's after me, S.P.D.'s after me. I can't go back! It'll only cause more problems! Back at the warehouse, I was ready to accept death if it meant finally being able to be with you again. I miss you so much! You're probably disappointed with me that I'm not the red ranger like you were."

"You're wrong Sky," William said walking up to Sky. "I don't think your dad could be any prouder."

XXXXXXXXXXX

Back at Piggy's café, Jack and Z had arrived.

"It's S.P.D. run!" an alien shouted.

Seconds later, the café was customer-less.

"Why do you insist on chasing away my customers?" Piggy remarked.

"We wanted to ask you something," Z said.

"I told you. I'm out of that line of work!" Piggy exclaimed.

"Ok Piggy, what do you want from us? You name it and we'll give it to you if you answer some questions," Jack said.

"For one year, you rangers will stay away from my café," Piggy answered.

"One day," Jack replied.

"Six months," Piggy said.

"One hour," Jack responded.

"One month," Piggy answered.

"One minute," Jack said.

"One day," Piggy replied.

"Deal," Jack stated.

"Deal," Piggy agreed. "Sky came to me earlier today and told me to tell you guys that he was fine."

"That's all? He didn't say where he was going?" Z asked.

"No," Piggy answered.

"Are you sure?" Jack asked.

"Yes," Piggy replied.

"Ok, thanks Piggy," Z said. Z and Jack left.

"Wait a minute! One day?" Piggy shouted realizing he had fallen for the same trick.

XXXXXXXXXX

Kat was walking down the hallways of the Academy, when she saw Bridge standing outside of Syd's door.

"What's going on?" Kat asked.

"Syd won't let me in," Bridge answered.

"What happened?" Kat asked.

"I think Jack told her what had happened between the two of them," Bridge replied.

"I see," Kat responded.

"Hey Kat?" Bridge asked.

"Yeah?" Kat answered.

"Why don't you just track Sky's morpher?" Bridge asked.

"Because there's no tracker on the morpher, so the only way I can pinpoint his location is if he contacts us or he answers when we contact him," Kat explained.

"Have you tried contacting him yet?" Bridge asked.

"Not yet," Kat answered.

"I think we should because I can't follow through with destroying my best friend," Bridge remarked.

"Give him a call," Kat said.

Bridge took out his morpher and contacted Sky.

"Sky, do you copy?"

XXXXXXXXXXX

Back at Sky's old house, his morpher was beeping.

"Aren't you going to answer that?" William asked.

"I don't know if I want to," Sky replied.

"I think you should," William commented.

Sky reluctantly opened his morpher.

"Sky here," he said.

"Sky? Is that really you?" Bridge asked.

"Yes it's me," Sky replied.

"So you're ok?" Bridge asked.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" Sky asked.

"Well you attacked us yesterday," Bridge remarked.

"My mind was being controlled, but I'm fine now. Grumm is searching for me though," Sky replied.

"Where are you?" Bridge asked.

Sky hesitated. "I'm on my way to the Academy," Sky answered. He saw William smiling at him like Sky was doing the right thing.

"Ok, well I guess I'll see you when you get here," Bridge said.

"Ok, see you then," Sky said before hanging up.

"So, I guess you won't be staying here after all?" William asked.

"I guess not," Sky replied. "Take care William," Sky said hugging the butler.

"You too Sky. If you ever want to come back, don't hesitate dropping by. I could sure use the company," William said.

"I will," Sky said.

"Oh and Sky?" William asked.

"Yeah?" Sky replied.

"You can take the car in the driveway. You'll get there faster," William said.

"Thanks," Sky said.

Sky walked to the driveway and he saw Morgana and Giganis.

"So, did you really think you could hide from us?" Morgana asked.

"How did you find me?" Sky asked.

"Oh please. It was obvious to me. This is the only place you'd go!" Giganis commented.

"Now ranger, it's time you return to Grumm. He's very angry at you," Morgana said.

"You want me? Come and get me! S.P.D. emergency!" Sky shouted.

Sky took out his Patrol Baton and headed in the direction of Morgana and Giganis when he found he couldn't move.

"To think you were this close to actually escaping me!" Grumm said standing behind Sky. Grumm had his hand up in the air and was using his telekinesis to stop Sky in his tracks. Grumm then threw Sky through a window.

"Sky, are you alright?" William asked.

"William, get out of here now!" Sky yelled.

"I'm not leaving you," William said.

Grumm lifted Sky in the air with his telekinesis and then threw him into the traffic on the street. Sky's body hit an oncoming semi truck and there was a sickening thud. Sky fell to the ground demorphed, bloodied, and his eyes had rolled to the back of his head.

The truck driver hit the brakes, got out of his truck, and ran when he saw Grumm, Morgana, and Giganis.

"Sky!" William shouted. He ran over to check on him, but was blasted in the back by Grumm's staff. William fell the ground dead.

"I told you ranger, Grumm was not happy!" Morgana said to the battered and bloodied blue ranger.

"Now that I've taught you a lesson, you're coming back with us!" Grumm said. He forcefully jabbed a second shot into Sky's neck. He draped Sky over his shoulders and he, Morgana, and Giganis teleported back to their ship.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Bridge was pacing back and forth in his room.

"Come on Sky, where are you? You said you were on your way back and that was fifteen minutes ago!" Bridge thought to himself.

Kat was passing by Bridge's room when she saw Bridge pacing back and forth.

"Were you able to contact Sky?" Kat asked.

"Yeah and he said he was on his way to the Academy, but that was fifteen minutes ago, so he should've been here by now. Something's not right," Bridge commented.

To Be Continued…

Note: Wow! Last chapter I received six reviews. That's amazing! That's the best turnout for a chapter thus far. Thank you so, so much. I'm glad you guys support me after I told you about the review I had received. After I received that review, honestly it was so hard for me to continue with this fanfic, but then I thought of all of the wonderful people who have read, reviewed, and supported this fanfic, and I realized they were counting on me to update. Thank you for rekindling my motivation. I finally touched on the Syd issue after I had received some comments asking when I would. KendrixAimeeOliver, NinjaStorm4Life, Beautiful-Me89, sky's girl forever, Crimson Mystery, sye04, and monkay-pooh thank you for having reviewed my fanfic. I kind of have a writer's block at the moment after getting the ideas I had in mind incorporated into my chapters, so I'll try to de-block myself soon. Thanks again. Oh, and I'm so excited for the two new S.P.D. episodes coming up this Saturday (for me at least since I don't have stupid Toon Disney). I can't wait for that!


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers.

**Dissension within the Ranks**

Chapter 11

At Grumm's ship, Sky was lying unconscious in his cell. Giganis entered and looked at his former best friend.

"You know how easy it would be for me to kill you right now," Giganis said.

A voice interrupted him. "But you won't,"

Giganis turned around to see Grumm standing behind him.

"I don't understand my emperor. What do you plan to do with Sky?" Giganis asked.

"That is not your concern," Grumm replied. "All you need to be aware of is that if I find out you have harmed him, I will have you vaporized!"

Grumm left and headed towards another part of the ship leaving a very confused Giganis.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back at the Academy, Bridge was still worried that Sky hadn't shown up by now, so he went to talk to Cruger.

"What is it Cadet Carson?" Cruger asked.

"Sir, I was able to contact Sky hours ago, and he told me he was fine and on his way here, but I haven't heard from him since and he's not here," Bridge answered.

"Maybe it's for the best," Cruger said.

Bridge had a confused look on his face. "Did you just say what I think you said?"

"He's a criminal that needs to be brought in or destroyed so I don't see the problem with him not being here," Cruger explained.

"He's not a criminal. He's a power ranger just like us. His mind is being controlled," Bridge retorted.

"Did he say that?" Cruger asked.

"Yes," Bridge answered.

"And you believe him?" Cruger asked.

"Of course. He's my best friend," Bridge replied.

"Then you're a fool," Cruger remarked.

"I can't believe I'm hearing this. Don't you care about him at all?" Bridge asked.

"Of course I do, but that doesn't change the fact that he attacked you guys and that will not go unpunished," Cruger answered.

Bridge let out a frustrated sigh. If looks could kill, then Cruger would have a hole drilled through him due to Bridge's intense gaze. Bridge had heard enough and left the command center.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sam, Z, Jack, and Syd were eating dinner in the cafeteria. Syd wasn't speaking to Jack. She wouldn't even look at him. Sam and Z weren't exactly on speaking terms with each other either after the fight that the two of them had. Z still felt uneasy around Syd after Syd had attacked her.

Jack was the first to break the silence. "We shouldn't be sitting here doing nothing! We should be out there looking for Sky!"

"What for? He attacked us!" Sam exclaimed.

"Oh, and I suppose you agree with Cruger that he should be contained or destroyed?" Z asked.

"If it stops him from causing trouble then yes," Sam answered.

Syd slid her chair back and stood up from the table. "Causing trouble? I've known Sky longer than you three and the Sky that attacked us wasn't the Sky I know."

"What is it with you and constantly saying that you've known Sky longer than we have?" Z asked irritated.

"Why is that a problem?" Syd asked.

"Yeah!" Z exclaimed.

"What are you gonna do about it?" Syd asked.

"Alright knock it off you two!" Jack ordered.

Syd looked at Jack and said, "Don't tell me what to do!"

"Fine. We'll try it the other way. I'm red ranger and that's an order!" Jack said in a firm tone.

Boom was watching the news and a particular story caught his attention. "Hey guys, I think you should come take a look at this," Boom said.

Bridge was now in the cafeteria and the five rangers gathered around the television.

"In tonight's top story, sixty year old William Morrison was found dead today in the front yard of his own home. Mr. Morrison was the Tate family's butler. Eyewitnesses claim they saw a woman in purple armor, a skeleton with one horn, and a dark blue monster in the driveway. They also claim seeing the blue ranger being thrown through a window and later into a semi by the skeleton creature. Reports also say that the skeleton creature killed Mr. Morrison by shooting him in the back with his staff. Mr. Morrison's funeral will be in three days."

"Did you guys hear that?" Boom asked.

"No doubt the three aliens were Morgana, Grumm, and Giganis," Z said.

"Yeah, but why would Grumm attack Sky? I thought Sky was working for Grumm?" Sam asked.

"Only when his mind is being controlled," Bridge answered.

"What?" Syd asked.

"I contacted Sky earlier today and he told me that his mind was being controlled. He said he was fine and was on his way back to the Academy, but that was hours ago and from the looks of things, Grumm found him before he could get back here," Bridge said.

"Do you still think Sky is a criminal?" Z asked Sam with hands on her hips.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back at Grumm's ship, it was time to give Sky another shot.

Grumm handed Broodwing the needle. "Here give this to the blue ranger before he wakes up."

Broodwing took the needle. He turned to head for Sky's cell but then stopped in his tracks. "You do realize that this is the last shot right? If you want more, you'll have to pay for it," Broodwing said.

"Pay for it? I've already given you enough money! Need I remind you who the emperor around here is?" Grumm shouted.

"Well, if you're suggesting I give you more shots for free, then you need to find yourself a new mercenary because I don't give things away for free," Broodwing said.

Grumm's eyes glowed red. "I'd think twice if I were you Broodwing. I can have you vaporized in a heartbeat!" Grumm roared.

Broodwing clenched his fists and let out a growl. He then turned on his heels and headed to Sky's cell to give him his shot.

XXXXXXXXXX

In the command center of the Academy, Cruger and Kat had also seen the news.

"So, do you still want Sky captured or destroyed?" Kat asked.

"Cadet Carson was right. This is all starting to make sense now," Cruger said.

"From the way things sound, whatever is being used to control Sky's mind is temporary, but the real question is how long the mind control is in effect?" Kat commented.

Cruger hadn't heard what Kat had said. Instead he was lost in his own thoughts. "I can't believe I had wanted Sky contained or destroyed! I should've known that our Sky is still somewhere in his mind trying to get out! Kat was right. Sky is like my son and what I had ordered the rangers to do to Sky makes me no different than Grumm," Cruger thought to himself.

"Doggie?" Kat asked trying to get Cruger's attention.

"Huh? Did you say something?" Cruger replied.

XXXXXXXXXX

Over in the cafeteria, the rangers were still reflecting on what they had just seen on the news.

"Sky's family had a butler? I never knew Sky came from a rich family," Syd remarked.

"Unbelievable," Z commented. "After everything you just saw in the news, the only thing you can talk about is money!"

"We have to help Sky. Grumm's controlling his mind somehow, and we have to stop him!" Bridge exclaimed.

"Bridge is right," Jack added.

"Whoa, since when did you start caring about Sky's well being?" Z asked.

"I can say the same thing about you!" Jack replied.

Z stuck her tongue out at Jack. Just then the alarms went off.

"Rangers please report to the command center immediately!" came over the intercom.

It wasn't long before the rangers stood at attention before their commander.

Cruger pointed to the viewing screen which showed Sky, Morgana, and Giganis had returned. Sky had a bunch of civilians trapped beneath a large force field. Sky was cutting them off from fresh oxygen. He was slowly suffocating them. What the rangers saw was mass chaos. People were running for their lives. However, they couldn't escape. They were thrown backwards when they came into contact with the boundaries of Sky's force field. All the civilians were shown gasping for air.

"What is he doing?" Sam asked.

"Rangers, you have to hurry or else those people will die!" Kat said.

"Ready?" Jack asked.

"Ready!" the other rangers answered.

"S.P.D. emergency!" they shouted simultaneously.

XXXXXXXXXX

In downtown New Tech City, Morgana and Giganis liked what they were seeing. It would only be a matter of minutes before the civilians were suffocated to death.

"Good work," Morgana said.

"Yeah keep it up old friend," Giganis added.

The sound of approaching sirens was heard. Then came a voice "Stop right there!"

"Well, what do we have here?" Morgana asked looking at the rangers that just arrived.

"Sky, you have to release your force field!" Syd pleaded.

"I'm afraid not. Soldier boy won't release the force field until all the people trapped beneath it are dead," Giganis said.

"You shouldn't worry about him though, you should worry about us!" Morgana said sending a purple energy blast at the rangers.

The blast sent the rangers flying through the air. They hit the ground with an impact.

"Five against two? I don't like these odds! Let's even the playing field!" Giganis said before throwing a metal ball down on the ground. A bunch of krybots appeared.

"Spread out!" Jack commanded.

Jack and Sam paired up against Giganis. Z and Syd paired up against Morgana. Bridge worked on taking out the krybots.

Bridge took out one krybot with a corkscrew kick. "One!" He took out a second one with a leg sweep. "Two!" A krybot threw a punch, but Bridge dodged it before connecting with a punch of his own. "Three!"

Morgana sent shock waves from the two daggers she held in her hands at the yellow and pink rangers. The female rangers were implementing acrobatics to avoid contact.

Morgana let out a frustrated sigh. "Stop that!"

Z and Syd pulled out their patrol batons. Swordplay ensued between the three. Morgana was successful in blocking, but the pink and yellow rangers were so relentless, that Morgana hadn't been able to do anything but defend.

Giganis sent Jack flying with a stream of electricity.

"Omega Morpher Hyper Mode!" Sam shouted. Sam nailed Giganis with a swift flurry of punches. Giganis fell to the ground.

"You'll pay for that!" Giganis said getting back up to his feet and transforming one arm into a sniper. He fired. Sam tumbled out of the way.

"Ha! You missed me!" Sam boasted.

"Too bad I wasn't aiming for you!" Giganis replied.

"Huh?" Sam asked confused. Just then rubble came crashing down on top of Sam, burying him beneath it.

"Sam!" Z shouted looking over to his position. Seeing an opening, Morgana emitted shockwaves from her two daggers in the form of a purple X. It hit Z full force knocking her to the ground.

Bridge had formed his Delta Max Striker and was blasting the krybots. "Four! Five! Seven! Eight!" Bridge shouted after leaping into the air and shooting four krybots below him.

Meanwhile, Sky was on the roof of a building with the force field still up. Something had caught his eye though. Below him were a little girl and a little boy both five years of age. They were curled up in a fetal position holding each other's hands.

"I can't breathe," said the little girl.

"It's ok. I'm right here. We'll be ok," said the little boy.

Their little bodies twisted and writhed in pain as their breathing became more staggered. Sky's heart dropped at the sight of that and he released the force field.

"What am I doing? How could I hurt those little kids?" Sky thought to himself. He climbed down the ladder that ran down the side of the building. Sky was in shock when the realization dawned on him as to what he was doing a few moments ago. He decided he had to leave New Tech City. He had no idea where he was going to go, but he knew that he couldn't stay here anymore. As he was about to leave, a blast from Giganis' sniper had missed its mark and came into contact with the building Sky was just on top of not too long ago. The blast caused rubble to fall. Sky saw that the rubble was going to fall on top of the little boy and the little girl. He rushed over to them and waved his arm around in a circle creating a force field. The rubble rolled down the force field without any harm being done to the children.

"You saved us!" the little girl exclaimed hugging Sky's leg.

"You're my hero!" the little boy said.

Sky crouched down so he was at their level and the children hugged him.

"Where are your parents?" Sky asked.

"We don't have a mommy and daddy," the little girl answered.

Sky patted their heads. "I have to go," he said.

Morgana and Giganis noticed that Sky had released his force field, but couldn't see much more than that since Sky was onanother side of the building.

"Why did he release the force field?" Morgana asked.

"I have no clue, but I thought Broodwing gave Sky his shot?" Giganis replied.

"I guess we should leave seeing how we only came to keep the other rangers from getting to Sky and stopping him from suffocating the civilians," Morgana said.

Morgana and Giganis teleported away.

"What was that all about?" Jack asked.

"I have no idea," Z responded.

The rangers went to check on the civilians.

Meanwhile, Sky was walking down an alley when a caped figure appeared from behind the shadows.

"Running away from Grumm I see. Didn't you learn your lesson last time?" Broodwing asked.

"Broodwing, what do you want?" Sky asked.

"Not much really. Just the same as you," Broodwing replied.

Sky furrowed his eyebrows. Confusion was written all over his face. "Why didn't you give me my shot?" Sky asked.

"Did you miss it that much? If so, I can still give it to you," Broodwing answered.

"Look, I don't trust you," Sky commented.

"I don't trust you either, but you are trying to get away from Grumm and so am I, so why not do it together?" Broodwing asked.

"Why would you be running away from Grumm? I thought you two were on the same team?" Sky asked.

"I'm on nobody's team ranger. I provide my services to anyone who will pay me, but I owe my allegiance to nobody," Broodwing said.

"Why would you want to come with me?" Sky asked.

"It's simple. We stand a better chance of getting away from Grumm together," Broodwing answered.

Sky was deep in thought. "I can't believe I nearly suffocated all those people back there especially the orphan boy and girl! For what? All because I was following Grumm's orders because I was afraid of what he'd do to me if I crossed him again! I can't stay here. Mind control or not, I'm a criminal now. After what I just did, I doubt the people here will want me here anyways! They are probably afraid of me, a power ranger, and they have every right to be after my inexcusable actions!"

"So what do you say? Are we going to run from Grumm together or what?" Broodwing asked.

To Be Continued…

Note: Sorry I took so long with this update. Thanks again to everyone who has reviewed. Remember please be nice and keep in mind that this is my first fanfic so don't expect it to be the best of the best or anything like that. I'll try to update soon but between writer's block and schoolwork, that's easier said than done.


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers.

**Dissension within the Ranks**

Chapter 12

Broodwing had his hand extended. "So, do we have a deal?"

"Nope you're on your own," Sky said walking past Broodwing.

Broodwing was shocked but not surprised. He called out to the blue ranger. "It won't be long until Gruumm finds you again. You can't run away from him forever!" Broodwing shouted.

It wasn't clear whether or not Sky had heard what Broodwing said. If he did, he certainly didn't acknowledge it. Sky just kept walking.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back at the Academy, Cruger had called the rangers to a meeting in the command center. He paced back and forth for awhile before finally speaking.

"I want you to separate into two groups and search for Sky. He couldn't have gotten very far. Jack, you, Bridge, and Syd will form one group. I want you to search New Tech Center. Sam and Z, you will form the second group. I want you to search the City Plaza." Cruger stated.

Syd stepped forward. "Why are you putting me in the same group as Jack? I want to be in a different group," Syd commented.

Cruger walked over to Sydney and looked at her. "I am fully aware that our team isn't getting along. I plan to change that by forcing you to work together with those whom you don't get along with," Cruger replied. "Now go!"

XXXXXXXXXX

Over in Gruumm's ship, Morgana and Giganis had just told him that Sky had escaped again.

"So you have no idea where he is?" Gruumm asked.

"No. After he released his force field, he left," Morgana answered.

"How is that possible? I thought Broodwing gave Sky his shot? His mind should've been controlled unless…" Gruumm started to say.

"Unless what?" Giganis asked.

Gruumm let out an evil laugh. "They both thought they could get away with it," Gruumm said.

"Who?" Morgana asked.

"Broodwing made me believe that he had given Sky his shot, but in actuality he didn't. Sky made me think that he was under my control by putting up his force field, but really he wasn't. That was very clever of them, but now they both shall pay," Gruumm remarked.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sky kept on walking when he felt something tug on his jacket. He looked down and saw the orphan boy and girl.

"Please don't leave us alone," the boy said.

Sky knelt on the ground so he could look at them eye to eye. "You shouldn't be here. It isn't safe to be around me. People are looking for me, and I don't want to put you two in any danger," Sky said.

Just then, a tall man about seven feet tall and nearly 300 pounds stood before them. He looked over at the boy and girl and said, "There you are. I've been looking all over for you!"

The boy and girl hid behind Sky.

"Don't let him take us!" the girl pleaded.

"We don't wanna go back!" the boy exclaimed.

Sky stood up on his feet. He looked at the man. "Look, I don't know who you are, but these two don't want to go with you," Sky said.

The man walked over to Sky so that he was face to face. The man easily towered over Sky who was not by any means short in height. "Oh yeah? Well what are you going to do about it pretty boy?" the man asked shoving Sky.

"You have no idea who you're dealing with! You picked the wrong guy to mess with!" Sky said his fist connecting with the bigger man's jaw.

The bigger man stumbled back a couple of feet and put his hand to his jaw massaging it. "On the contrary, I know exactly who you are. You've been all over the news a lot lately. You've been portrayed as both a hero and a criminal. If you want to play like that, then I'll have no problem rearranging your face!" the bigger man said punching Sky on the bridge of the nose.

Blood started trickling out of Sky's nostrils. He put his hand to his nose and saw the blood. Sky turned so that he was facing the boy and girl. "Go on. Get out of here! I'll take care of him," Sky said. The little boy and girl ran for cover.

XXXXXXXXXX

In the City Plaza, Sam and Z were searching for Sky. Sam saw that Z wasn't speaking to him and that just broke his heart.

"Come on Z talk to me!" Sam begged.

Z spun around to face Sam. "I have nothing to say to you," Z said.

"Look I know you're worried about Sky, but…" Sam started to say.

"You have no idea what I'm going through!" Z yelled before he could finish.

Sam put a hand on Z's shoulder. With his other hand he lifted Z's face so that she was looking at him. "So tell me," Sam said softly.

Z brushed Sam's hand off of her shoulder and turned away from Sam. "Stop doing this!" Z exclaimed.

"Doing what?" Sam asked.

"Coming onto me," Z replied.

"I can't ignore my feelings Z. Maybe you can, but I can't," Sam said.

Z threw her hands up in the air. "God Sam, for the last time, I don't have any feelings for you!" Z yelled.

"Yes you do. I know you care about me," Sam said.

"Not in the way that you think," Z commented.

"I think you do. I don't see why a relationship between the two of us couldn't work. Sure we couldn't kiss or have sex, but none of that matters to me. All that matters is that I have you." Sam said.

Z spun around to face Sam. She pulled back her hand and slapped him across the face. "Damn it Sam! I told you my heart belongs to Sky!" she shouted.

"Yeah, well Sky's probably not coming back. I think it's for the best. He's a criminal now. You deserve better," Sky said.

Z's eyes were filled with hurt. "I can't believe you just said that! You seem to be forgetting one thing. I'm a criminal too! I'm only a power ranger because I wanted to be a part of something bigger, something that makes a difference. Besides, my only other alternative was to serve my sentence in prison for who knows how long. So, if you're going to judge Sky because he's a criminal, then you're going to have to judge me the same way!" Z screamed.

"I'm sorry Z. I didn't know," Sam said.

"Are you still interested in me or do you not want to be in a relationship with a criminal?" Z asked.

Sam stuttered out, "Z, I…I…"

Z continued speaking. "You know Sam, not all criminals are bad people. Some criminals are good people that have just made a few bad decisions or a few mistakes," Z said.

XXXXXXXXXX

At New Tech Center, Jack, Bridge, and Syd were searching for Sky.

Jack noticed that Bridge was staying away from him. "What's your problem?" Jack asked.

Bridge ignored Jack's question and continued to stay a safe distance away from him.

"I can't believe Cruger placed us with you!" Syd said to Jack.

"Are you still upset about…?" Jack started to say before being interrupted by Syd.

"Upset? How could I not be upset? You ruined my life! How could you stoop so low? You're so pathetic you won't even accept responsibility for your actions. Instead you're blaming it on your being mentally unstable because you were in prison. If I turn out to be pregnant, what am I going to tell my son or daughter? Am I supposed to tell him or her that I was in a loveless relationship with their father? That their father raped me and their existence is a mistake?" Syd asked with a voice full of rage.

Bridge and Jack were both shocked at Syd's outburst.

"I can be a good father Syd," Jack said.

"I don't love you Jack! I never have and I never will! I'm never going to forgive you for what you did to me!" Syd yelled.

Bridge finally worked up the courage to say something to Jack.

"I'm never going to forgive you either! Do you want to know what my problem is with you? My problem is that I've lost complete respect for you! You're a loose cannon Jack. I have no idea when you're going to go off on me or anybody else. You attacked me. You attacked Sky. You raped Syd. Those are not the actions of a leader, of a ranger!" Bridge shouted.

Jack couldn't believe that Syd and Bridge were ganging up on him. He wiped the surprised look of his face and replied, "What about Sky? I suppose you still think he is the best! Fortunately, none of the civilians suffered serious injuries from being trapped beneath his force field. Is that the type of action of a leader, a ranger?" Jack asked.

"His mind was being controlled Jack!" Bridge yelled.

"What's your problem Jack? I thought you and Sky had settled your differences! Come to think of it, you never really liked him or got along with him did you? You never even gave him a chance! Deep down you know he's the better man!" Syd screamed.

"Oh please! Better man my ass! Sky's not fit to be leader! Sky's made much more mistakes than I have! First, he disobeyed my order and left his post allowing Gruumm to steal a stash of diamonds. Then he let an assassin into the Academy which resulted in Cruger nearly getting killed. Then, he allowed Mirloc to escape prison because he wasn't able to control his emotions. More recently, he nearly killed a bunch of civilians by trapping them under a force field!" Jack retorted.

"Sky risked his life to allow Z and me to get out of the warehouse. He would've died if it wasn't for S.P.D.'s state of the art life support machine. He put the needs of others before the needs of his own which is more than I can say about you!" Bridge retaliated.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sky was pinned up against a wall with a hand wrapped tightly around his throat. He was gasping for air and tried desperately to pry the hand from his neck.

The bigger man had a huge grin on his face. He was enjoying the feeling of windpipes crushing beneath his hand. "What's the matter pretty boy? Can't you breathe?" the man asked tightening his grip.

Sky was kicking and squirming but he couldn't maneuver much because the bigger man's body weight was pressing him against the wall. He managed to get an arm free and waved it around in a circle creating a force field that broke the grip and sent his attacker flying to the ground. Sky fell to all fours. He was coughing up blood. Blood was running down his neck from where his attacker's hand was.

His attacker got up to his feet. "What the hell was that you freak?" he hollered. He ran over to Sky and kicked him in the ribs. Sky groaned and clutched his ribs.

Just then, the little boy and girl ran in between the attacker and Sky with their arms extended they said, "Leave him alone!"

XXXXXXXXXX

Back at the City Plaza, Sam and Z were still arguing.

"How can you even be attracted to Sky? He's so stubborn and strict and…" Sam started to say.

"He's also caring and selfless," Z said. "He sacrificed himself in the warehouse to save Bridge and me not caring what happened to him!"

"What does he have that I don't have?" Sam finished saying.

"Aw, is Sparky the nightlight jealous?" Z taunted.

Sam denied it. "Jealous? Me? No way!"

"That's so cute!" Z commented.

"Stop calling me Sparky the nightlight. Wait, did you say cute?" Sam asked.

Z averted her gaze so she wasn't looking at Sam. "Yeah um, don't read too much into that," Z said.

"So you do like me?" Sam asked hopeful.

Z rolled her eyes. "I thought I just told you not to read too much into that?" Z asked.

"Come on Z, answer the question," Sam begged.

Z sighed. "Of course I like you. I've felt a certain connection with you from the moment we first met each other. Granted, you were a kid then, but now that you're an adult, it gives me hope," Z said.

Sam was shocked at what he just heard. If he wasn't wearing his helmet, Z could see that his jaw dropped. "I thought you said that we can't be together because you wouldn't be able to kiss me or have sex with me?" Sam asked.

"I only said that because I thought that was important to you, but since you told me it's not important to you, maybe we could give us a try," Z said.

"I thought your heart belonged to Sky?" Sam asked.

"It does, but like you said we may never find him, so maybe it's best for me to move on," Z answered.

Sam was smiling beneath his helmet.

XXXXXXXXXX

At New Tech Center, Jack, Bridge, and Syd were still going at it.

"I know you two and Sky have been through a lot together, but damn why must you always treat me like an outsider?" Jack asked.

Bridge calmed down before speaking. "The three of us share a bond with one another, much like the bond that you share with Z," Bridge said.

Jack walked over to Bridge. Bridge took a couple steps back.

"Bridge, I won't hurt you," Jack said. Bridge stopped retreating. Jack put a hand on Bridge's shoulder. "Look, I know you two care about Sky and believe it or not, so do I. We'll find him," Jack said.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Out of the way you little brats!" the man screamed at the little boy and girl.

"No!" they shouted back.

"Listen to your daddy and move it!" the man yelled shoving the little boy and girl to the ground.

Sky got to his feet. He checked to make sure the kids were ok. "That was uncalled for!" Sky exclaimed.

"You're not our daddy!" the little boy hollered at the man.

"Daddy or not, you two are coming back to the group home!" the man hollered.

"Not if I can help it!" Sky said punching the man in the gut. The man doubled over. Sky punched the man in the side of the face. Sky threw another punch except this time his fist was caught. He threw a punch with his other hand, but the man caught that fist too. The bigger man kicked Sky in the chest sending him flying backwards into the wall.

Sky's attacker laughed evilly. "Ha! Some ranger you are! You're not so tough!"

Sky's morpher started beeping. Sky answered, "Cadet Tate here."

Cruger's voice came through on the other end. "Where are you at Sky?"

Sky was about to answer when his attacker knocked his morpher out of his hand sending it skidding down the alley. Sky's attacker pulled out a knife from his pocket.

"Oh great," Sky thought to himself.

Sky's attacker lunged at Sky with the knife. Sky sidestepped. He swept his attacker's legs out from under him. Sky pulled out a set of handcuffs and reached down to put them on his attacker when his attacker stabbed him in the stomach. Blood started pouring out of the knife wound.

"No!" the little girl shouted. The two kids ran over to Sky.

The attacker grabbed them by the wrists. "You're coming with me!" he shouted walking away with them.

The two kids squirmed and tried to break free from his grasp, but to no avail. "Let me go!" they shouted.

Sky pulled the knife out of his stomach and got up and stabbed his attacker in the back. The bigger man fell to his knees and then fell to the ground face down.

The two kids ran over to Sky. Sky knelt down so he was at their level, and they hugged him.

"Are you ok?" the little girl asked.

Sky looked into her eyes and could see the worry. He had no clue why the two of them cared about him so much considering how he nearly killed them when he had them trapped beneath his force field. He knew that they were afraid of their foster parent and didn't want to go with him and was glad that he stopped him from taking them.

"I'll be fine, how about you two?" Sky asked smiling.

The little boy pointed to a scrape on his knee. "I have a booboo," the boy said.

The little girl tugged on Sky's jacket. "Can you be our daddy?" she asked.

"Yeah, we never had a daddy before," the boy added.

Sky looked over at his attacker who was still lying on the ground face down. "I thought he was your daddy?" Sky asked pointing over at him.

"No all he did was yell at us and hurt us," the little boy answered.

Sky felt so bad once he heard that. "How could someone be so mean to two innocent little kids?" Sky thought to himself.

"So, can you be our daddy, please?" the little girl asked.

Sky laughed when he saw the two children were giving him the puppy dog face. Then a frown replaced his smile. "I don't know if you two should be seen with me. People might think I've kidnapped you or something," Sky said.

"But you would never do that," the little boy said.

Just then, they heard sirens approaching. A jeep pulled up and out stepped Cruger. Cruger saw Sky's bloody nose, the blood trickling down his neck, and the knife wound on Sky's stomach.

"My God, what happened to you?" Cruger asked.

The two kids hid behind Sky.

"Who is that?" the little girl asked scared.

"Don't worry. He's my commander. I got into a fight protecting these two," Sky answered.

Cruger contacted the other rangers. "Rangers, I've found Sky, return to base," he ordered.

"You're a power ranger?" the little boy asked Sky.

"That's right," Sky answered.

"That's a pretty nasty wound you got there Sky. Let's get you back to base so we can get it treated. We need to talk as well about a lot of things, but that can wait," Cruger said.

Sky and the two children got into the jeep after Sky had retrieved his morpher, and the four of them drove back to the Academy.

The children's foster parent stirred on the ground. He rose to his feet. He managed to reach the knife and pull it out of his back. Staring at it he said, "Mark my words pretty boy, I will get those children back!" His hand tightened around the knife as he clenched his fists.

To Be Continued…

Note: So I realized I had been spelling New Tech City and Gruumm incorrectly, so I fixed that. Better late than never I suppose. I also realized that my story is not completely accurate in that Sky lost his father (which Mirloc is believed to be responsible for his death) when he was young and in my story, Sky lost his father after Dru had left for the Nebula Academy, but this is a fanfic so oh well. Thank you for reading and reviewing my story. 1601 hits? Wow, I never expected such results. Granted, I know that a hit doesn't necessarily mean that my story (or chapter as the case may be) was read in its entirety, but still. Not to sound rude or anything, but remember if you don't have anything nice to say or you don't have any constructive criticism to offer me, then don't review because I don't care to hear from you. I'll try to update soon.


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers.

**Dissension within the Ranks**

Chapter 13

The next morning Sky woke up in the infirmary. He saw the orphan boy and girl curled up asleep in one chair by his bed. Kat was also in the room.

"You know Sky, in the past week you've spent more time in the infirmary than you have your whole time here. Maybe we should make this your secondary room," Kat said.

Sky smiled. "No thanks Kat. As tempting as that sounds, waking up connected to machines and in a hospital bed is not something I'd like to do on a daily basis," Sky replied.

Kat smiled back. She motioned over towards the children. "They haven't left your side all night," Kat said.

That sentence made Sky smile. He watched them sleep peacefully. They looked so adorable. A thought came to Sky's mind which made him frown. "I'm in trouble aren't I?" Sky asked.

Before Kat could answer, the other rangers entered the infirmary. Immediately, Syd embraced Sky in a hug. "I'm so glad to see you!" Syd exclaimed.

A look of jealousy appeared on Z's face as she watched the scene before her. Sam had noticed it as well and beneath his helmet, it made him frown.

"It's great to have you back," Bridge said. "Hey Syd, you mind sharing Sky?" Bridge asked noticing how Syd was still hugging him.

Syd blushed. She released Sky from her embrace even though she didn't really want to. Bridge and Sky did their "secret handshake".

Something caught Z's attention. She walked over to the chair by Sky's bedside where the children were asleep. "Who are they?" Z asked.

Sky looked over to see who Z was talking about. "They're orphans. I protected them from their abusive foster father," Sky answered.

Just then, the two children woke up rubbing the sand from their eyes. "Could you keep it down?" the little boy asked.

Sky laughed. "Well, good morning," Sky said to the children.

The children's faces lit up at the sound of Sky's voice. "You're awake!" they exclaimed flinging themselves into Sky's arms.

Jack was shocked. He had never seen this side of Sky before. He never knew Sky was so caring and good with children.

The little girl tapped Sky on the shoulder. "You never answered our question. Can you be our daddy?" she asked.

Syd couldn't help herself. She let out an "Aww! That's so cute!"

The room filled with laughter. Sky looked into the children's eyes and could tell that they really wanted him to be their father. "I'll tell you what. I'll take you to Social Services and talk to some people there, and we'll see what we can do, ok?" Sky asked.

The children smiled and nodded their heads up and down.

XXXXXXXXXX

At Gruumm's ship, Gruumm was devising a plan to capture the blue ranger once again.

"Giganis," Gruumm said calling over Sky's former best friend.

Giganis stepped forward. "What is it my emperor?" he asked.

"When you escaped prison, you stole an S.P.D. ship right?" Gruumm asked.

"Yes sir," Giganis replied.

"Excellent. I'll need that in order for my plan to work," Gruumm said. He then transformed into Supreme Commander Fowler Birdy. "It's time to pay S.P.D. a visit," Gruumm said.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back at the infirmary, Cruger had arrived.

"Cadet Tate, how are you feeling?" Cruger asked.

Sky looked at his commander. "I'm fine thanks," Sky answered.

Sam pulled Z outside of the infirmary.

"What are you doing?" Z asked.

"I can't take it anymore!" Sam exclaimed.

Z had a puzzled look on her face. "What are you talking about?" Z asked.

"Yesterday, you said that you were willing to give us a try. Now, Sky's back in the picture and where does that leave us?" Sam asked.

"Don't do this to me," Z said.

"Don't do what?" Sam asked.

Z hesitated. She looked back in the infirmary at Sky. "Don't make me choose between you and Sky," she answered.

"Look Z, I care about you. Care is not a good enough word though. I love you," Sam said.

Z looked in the infirmary and saw Sky interacting with the children. "But you can't give me kids. I never thought Sky would be the type of guy that would be good with children, but look at him. Those children adore him. I've always wanted kids, and I can't have that with you," Z said.

Beneath his helmet Sam was crying. Z could hear Sam sniffling. "We could adopt or you could come with me to the future when we find a time portal," Sam suggested.

"I don't belong in your time. My place is right here in my time. Adopting is out of the question. I want to have my own children," Z said.

Sam transformed into a ball of light and floated away.

Just then a voice over the intercom announced, "Supreme Commander Fowler Birdy has just arrived at the Academy."

Cruger heard this as well. "That can't be right. Birdy always informs us ahead of time when he's going to be arriving. He doesn't just show up unexpectedly," Cruger said.

Kat unhooked Sky from the machines and handed Sky his uniform. "Get changed and meet us in the command center," Kat said as she, Cruger, and the other rangers left for the command center.

XXXXXXXXXX

Over at Social Services, the children's foster father returned.

"Oh my God! What happened to you?" a lady asked in horror upon seeing his black eye andnoticing a trail of blood.

The man looked at her and replied, "The blue ranger attacked me and left me for dead. Not only that, but he took my children!"

The woman gasped. "Hold on. I'll call an ambulance," she said.

"No! I don't need an ambulance! I need my children back!" the man shouted.

XXXXXXXXXX

In the command center, Cruger, Kat, and the rangers minus Sky were standing at attention in front of Commander Birdy.

Cruger stepped forward. "Welcome to S.P.D. Earth station Supreme Commander Birdy sir. What brings you here?" Cruger asked.

Birdy glared at Cruger. "You know exactly why I'm here. I've gotten wind of the atrocities one of your precious rangers has committed here on Earth," Birdy answered.

Kat stepped forward. "That may not be an accurate assessment. Sky's mind was being controlled," Kat said.

"The fact of the matter is that he committed a serious crime and that will not go unpunished. You know Miss Manx that the punishment for such a crime is banishment from the planet," Birdy stated.

Gasps filled the air.

"I know," came a voice. The rangers saw Sky enter the command center. "I accept my punishment."

Syd ran over to Sky and tugged on his arm. "No, Sky! You can't be serious! We just got you back and we're not about to lose you again!" Syd exclaimed.

"Yeah it wasn't your fault. Your mind was under control," Bridge added.

"You're leaving us?" a tiny voice asked.

Sky turned around and saw the little boy and girl.

"I thought you were going to be our daddy?" the little boy asked.

Sky's heart broke at their questions. Sky walked over them and got down on one knee so he was at their level. "Listen to me. Somewhere out there is a nice couple who would love to be your parents. I know you care about me, but I don't deserve you two. Not after what I've done. Besides, you deserve both a mommy and a daddy not just a daddy. Be good ok?"

"Take us with you!" the little girl shouted tears streaming down her cheek.

"We'll be good," the little boy said his eyes watering as well.

"I'm afraid he can't do that," Birdy said grabbing Sky's arm and leading him out of the command center.

"Hey, what are you doing? Let go of me!" Sky said.

Bridge sensed something was terribly wrong. He took off one of his gloves and scanned Birdy's aura. "Guys, that's not Birdy," Bridge said.

Jack looked concerned. "What are you talking about Bridge?" he asked.

Z went over to Bridge and shook him. "Then who is it?" she shouted.

Bridge was frightened by Z's reaction. "I…I…I don't know. I only read auras so I have no way of knowing," Bridge answered. "All I know is his aura was red and Birdy's aura should not be red. A red aura means an evil presence," Bridge explained.

Cruger ran out of the command center chasing Birdy. "Come on, we have to get to Sky before it's too late!" he ordered.

XXXXXXXXXX

Birdy threw Sky into the S.P.D. ship and prepared for takeoff.

"Ow, what the heck is your problem?" Sky asked picking himself off the ground.

Birdy sent a piercing gaze in Sky's direction. "Mind your manners cadet. You will address me as 'sir'!" Birdy ordered.

The ship took off.

"Damn it! We're too late!" Cruger yelled pounding his fist into a wall.

Bridge contacted Sky through his morpher.

Sky heard his morpher beeping and answered it. "Sky here," he said.

"Sky, it's me Bridge. I don't know who it is, but that is not Birdy. I scanned his aura and his aura was red which means that whatever or whoever he is is evil," Bridge explained.

"What?" Sky asked.

Just then, Birdy transformed into Gruumm. He used his telekinetic abilities to slam Sky into a wall. Sky fell to the ground.

"You know ranger, I'm really getting tired of you running away from me! I guess I'll have to teach you some respect!" Gruumm yelled.

Sky picked himself off the ground. "Yeah, well we'll just see about that. S.P.D. emergency!" he shouted.

Gruumm laughed evilly. "Oh please. Do you really think you stand a chance against me?" Gruumm asked.

"With you no longer controlling my mind, as a matter of fact I do think I stand a chance," Sky answered.

Gruumm fired his staff at Sky. Sky dove to the ground to get out of the way. He formed his Delta Max Striker.

"Fire!" Sky shouted.

Gruumm deflected the attack with his staff. He then lifted Sky into the air with his telekinesis.

"Fine you do stand a chance. However, your chances of beating me are slim to none," He wrapped his hand around Sky's throat while his other hand was holding him in place with telekinesis. Sky started choking. He couldn't even get his hands up to try to pry Grumm's hand off his throat due to his being caught in his telekinesis. Gruumm's hand tightened.

"I should just destroy you right now for your betrayal," Gruumm said.

Sky demorphed. He started to turn blue due to lack of oxygen. A look of fear was in Sky's eyes.

"Is that fear in your eyes ranger?" Gruumm taunted.

Gruumm threw Sky to the ground. Sky gasped for air and clutched his throat.

"What do you want from me?" Sky asked his voice scratchy.

Gruumm laughed evilly. "The Magnificence told me that the greatest threat to S.P.D. is one of its own, you. The Magnificence told me that you are the key to destroying S.P.D. from the inside out," Gruumm explained.

"I'll never work for evil!" Sky shouted. He picked himself off the ground and ran towards Gruumm.

Gruumm stopped him in his tracks with his telekinesis.

"You know you remind me of myself. All work and no play," Gruumm said.

"I'm nothing like you!" Sky spat.

Gruumm gave another evil laugh. "You are extremely loyal to S.P.D. without a doubt. You think I'm the enemy merely because Cruger said so. Are you sure you're on the right side? What if I were to tell you that Cruger is the enemy not me? What if I were to give you new orders? You want to talk about mind control? Cruger brainwashed you long before I even laid hands on you. You follow his orders without question because he tells you it's the right thing to do," Gruumm said.

"That's because it is! You're a monster! You're evil!" Sky shouted.

"Is that anyway to talk to your master my young apprentice?" Gruumm asked.

XXXXXXXXXX

Cruger let out a piercing howl.

"Damn it! How could I be such a fool? I should've known that wasn't Birdy!" Cruger yelled.

Kat walked over to Doggie and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Doggie, you can't blame yourself," Kat said.

Syd was beside herself. She was so happy and cheerful earlier this morning and now she was unapproachable. She had been bawling nonstop ever since they had been too late to stop the S.P.D. ship from leaving. Bridge walked over to Syd and hugged her.

"Don't worry Syd. We'll get Sky back. He's escaped twice before, he can do it again," Bridge said reassuringly.

Syd broke free from Bridge. "Just leave me alone! All of you!" she screamed before running to her room.

"So, I guess you won't have to choose after all," Sam said to Z.

"You selfish jerk! Sky just got kidnapped, and all you can think about is how I won't have to choose anymore?" Z yelled.

Jack had a perplexed look on his face. "Wait, you are interested in Z?" Jack asked Sam.

"Be careful how you answer that Sam," Bridge warned. "If you say yes, the next thing you know Jack might knock you unconscious!"

"Bridge come on, you're still holding that against me?" Jack asked.

Cruger growled. "Enough! I thought you all had worked out your problems?" Cruger asked.

Z, Sam, Jack, and Bridge all looked at the ground.

XXXXXXXXXX

In the command center, the children's foster parent had found them.

"All right kiddies, you're coming with me!" the man shouted scooping them up in his arms.

They kicked and squirmed and scratched the man trying to break free.

"Let us go!" they shouted.

"Where's your friend? He's not around to help you anymore is he? I guess he doesn't care about you after all," the man said.

"Liar!" the little boy hollered.

"Yeah he loves us," the little girl said.

"Then why isn't he saving you?" the man asked.

A guard heard the shouting and saw the man with the kids in his arms.

"You there, you mind telling me what the problem is here?" the guard asked.

The man smiled. "There's no problem at all. I'm their foster parent and I just came to pick up my kids."

"You're not our daddy!" the children shouted.

The guard was confused.

"Never mind what they said, I'll be going now," he stated.

XXXXXXXXXX

In Syd's room she was waiting for the results from the home pregnancy test she had just taken.

"Oh God!" Syd exclaimed seeing the result was positive. She threw the home pregnancy test at the wall breaking it. "That can't be right!" she said. She burst into tears and buried her face in her pillow. Her body was shaking from her sobbing.

Z entered the room and saw the broken home pregnancy test on the floor. It was clear to her what that meant. Z rushed over to Syd's bed and patted her on the back.

"This can't be happening!" Syd shouted.

Although Z was one to always say what was on her mind, she was at a complete loss for words. She just kept patting Syd's back unable to think of the right words to say.

"I thought you were afraid of me?" Syd asked sniffling.

"I'm not afraid of you. I never was. Besides, we girls have to stick together," Z answered.

"Oh God! Sky doesn't even know Jack raped me let alone that I'm pregnant," Syd said.

Z hugged Syd as she cried herheart out.

To Be Continued…

Note: Whew! Another chapter is done. 13 chapters? Wow! I had no idea my first fanfic would be so long! For the record I'm just as clueless as you about how long this fanfic is going to be! I know I had started my second fanfic, "Best Friends", but then I thought that I should probably finish this one first. You know focus on one thing at a time and finish what I started. Thanks for everyone's support. Don't sweat it if you haven't reviewed every chapter. I know that I personally have liked plenty of fanfics but haven't got around to actually reviewing them all, so I understand. Plus, many of you are writers as well as readers which makes it even more difficult to review, so I completely understand. I'll try to update soon.


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers.

**Dissension within the Ranks**

Chapter 14

Gruumm still had Sky lifted up in the air with his telekinesis when a stream of electricity sends Gruumm flying backwards into a wall.

"Who dares attack me?" Gruumm asked his eyes glowing red.

A figure came down from the ceiling where it was hanging upside down. The figure was Broodwing.

"Broodwing, what are you doing? You are supposed to be on my side!" Gruumm hollered.

Broodwing laughed evilly. "Your side? Why would I ever be on your side? I'm on nobody's side but my own!" Broodwing replied.

Gruumm shot Broodwing with his staff. When the smoke cleared, Broodwing was still standing without a scratch on him.

"But how?" Gruumm asked.

Sky was confused. He didn't know what the heck was going on here. He had no idea why Broodwing would save him. He had no idea why Broodwing and Gruumm would be fighting each other. He wasn't sure if he should help either of them or just let them beat each other senseless.

"For a mighty, powerful emperor you sure are stupid! Do I really need to spell it out for you? I'm a mercenary! What that means is you pay me and I provide you my services, therefore when you no longer pay me, I no longer provide you my services," Broodwing said.

Gruumm let out an angry roar. "I've told you that I've given you enough money for your ineffectual weaponry. Where has that got me? I've watched time and time again your robots, your monsters, your weapons be destroyed by the power rangers," Gruumm shouted.

"Hmm…this is really getting good. I'd give anything to have some popcorn right about now," Sky thought to himself. "Wait a second. If Gruumm isn't piloting the ship, then who is?"

"Well Gruumm, why don't you stop bitching and attack the rangers yourself if everything I provide you is so ineffectual? Some emperor you are! You have everyone do the dirty work while you sit on your ass!" Broodwing screamed.

XXXXXXXXXX

Jack had made his way to Syd's room just in time to see Z come out from there.

"How is she?" Jack asked.

Z frowned. She turned so she wasn't facing Jack. Then she said, "Not good. She's really worried about Sky not to mention the fact that she just found out she's pregnant."

Jack sighed. "Yeah I know what you mean. We all feel…wait a second. Did you just say Syd's pregnant?" Jack asked.

"Unfortunately," Z replied.

"Unfortunately? That's great!" Jack exclaimed.

The door to Syd and Z's room opened to show the pink ranger with hands on her hips and tears still streaming down her face ruining her makeup. "Great? No Jack that's not great!" Syd exclaimed.

"Are you kidding me? We're going to have a baby!" Jack said.

Z rolled her eyes and sighed in disgust. "You're not the one who has to carry around a child for nine months not to mention have to give birth to it Jack! Pregnancy can be very scary to a bunch of women," Z explained.

"You failed to mention the reason I'm pregnant Z. He raped me. You don't get it because you're a guy. Some women prefer to wait to have sex until they have it with the man they want to spend the rest of their life with," Syd said.

"Are you saying you don't want to spend the rest of your life with me?" Jack asked.

"Hello? Yes that's what she's saying!" Z answered.

"You know you could have taken it slow and actually dated me first instead of just forcing yourself on me," Syd remarked.

Jack put his hands on Syd's shoulders. "But we're having a baby," Jack said.

"Jack get your hands off my shoulders now before you have a fist of iron pounded into your big head!" Syd warned.

"You wouldn't do that because that's what got you in prison in the first place," Jack said.

"Try me!" Syd said reaching into her pocket for a lump of iron.

Syd was pulled back by Z. "Don't Syd. He's not worth it," Z said.

Jack had a shocked look on his face. "You don't mean that Z. I thought I was like a brother to you?" Jack asked.

"Oh is that what you consider yourself now? Funny because I recall one time you wanting me to be your girlfriend. So which is it Jack? Am I your sister or your girlfriend?" Z asked.

"I'm your brother. No, your boyfriend. Hey, is this a trick question?" Jack asked.

"Come on Syd," Z said leading Syd back into the room they shared.

XXXXXXXXXX

The children's foster dad took them back to his home. He led them to their bedroom and shut the door behind him and locked it. He dropped the kids on the floor.

"Now kiddies, it's time you learn some respect. Take off your clothes!" their foster dad ordered.

This wasn't anything new to the children so they immediately followed orders otherwise they'd be in even worse trouble with their foster dad than they already were in.

Their foster dad took off his belt and started whipping them with it. With each and every whip came the sound of leather smacking flesh as the belt came down on the backs of the children time and time again. The children were crying both from the pain that the belt caused upon striking their flesh and from terrifying fear.

"This is for talking to and running off with a stranger!" their foster dad shouted striking their backs with his belt. Large welts started forming on both of the children's backs.

"This is for not calling me 'daddy'!" their foster dad yelled striking their backs with the belt again. Now blood started oozing out of the welts on their backs. It trickled down their small naked bodies.

A smile of satisfaction appeared on their foster dad's face as he looked at the battered and bloodied backs of his two children.

XXXXXXXXXX

Bridge was in the room that he and Sky shared. Bridge was lying on his bed deep in thought. He was thinking about how he should've noticed that Birdy was an imposter sooner. He was thinking about how Sky sacrificed himself at the warehouse to save both he and Z. He was thinking about how close he was to finally being able to share his room with Sky, his best friend again. His eyes followed the green stripe that ran across the wall on his side of the room. Eventually, it changed into a blue stripe that ran across the wall on Sky's side of the room. He frowned. Bridge closed his eyes hoping that sleep would drown away his guilt.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back on the S.P.D. ship, Sky was relieved to discover that the ship was on auto-pilot. However, he didn't like what the destination was, Gruumm's ship. So, he entered in a new destination, S.P.D. Earth station. He turned around and saw that Gruumm had lifted Broodwing five feet in the air with his telekinesis.

"I know what that feels like all too well," Sky thought to himself. He was pondering whether or not he should help Broodwing. He concluded that if, if being the operative word, he decided to help one of them, it would be Broodwing since after all Broodwing did save his backside earlier. Then he wondered if he could just sneak out without them noticing anything but decided that wouldn't work because they were out in space. Maybe once they were back at S.P.D. Maybe.

Gruumm eyed the mercenary up and down. He circled around him. Then he decided to speak. "So, you dare defy me?" Gruumm asked.

Just then, a force field slammed into Gruumm. Gruumm turned around to see that the blue ranger had snuck up behind Gruumm so that he was only inches away which would enable his force field tohit him. Broodwing and Sky got into an attacking stance beside one another facing Gruumm.

Gruumm laughed evilly. "Well, well, well. What do we have here? The blue ranger and the traitor joining forces! Too bad it's still not enough!" Gruumm said before shooting them with his staff.

Sky waved his arm around in a circle erecting a force field to protect Broodwing and himself. Gruumm was still blasting away.

"You know you can't hold up that force field forever ranger," Gruumm said seeing that Sky was starting to strain.

Broodwing saw this as well.

"Attack him while he's distracted. He's right. I can't hold this up for much longer," Sky said to Broodwing.

"You know what a skeleton's weakness is?" Broodwing asked not really to anyone in particular. "Fire!" Broodwing shouted pulling out a flamethrower from his cape. He engulfed Gruumm with flames. Gruumm's body was on fire. He was screaming in pain. He was running to and fro like a chicken with its head cut off. Finally he teleported out of there.

Sky extended his hand for Broodwing to shake.

"Thanks," Sky said.

Broodwing shook Sky's hand. "No, thank you. Don't worry ranger, I won't hurt you. As far as I'm concerned we share a common enemy in Gruumm," Broodwing said before transforming into a bat and teleporting away.

Sky had a puzzled look on his face. "Did that just happen?" Sky thought to himself.

XXXXXXXXXX

Over in the room that Syd and Z shared, Syd had calmed down somewhat. She was no longer crying but occasionally sniffled. There was a comfortable silence in the room.

"Why are you being so nice to me? I thought you were jealous that I was interested in Sky too?" Syd asked.

Z was surprised when she heard Syd speak. The room had been silent up until that point for quite some time now with the exception of the sound of Syd crying. "It's like I told you before. We girls have to stick together. Besides, if situations were reversed I know I'd want someone to be there for me like I am trying to be there for you now," Z answered.

A small smile appeared on Syd's face. Then, she started giggling. Z looked at Syd not knowing what she could possibly be giggling about.

"It is kind of silly how we were fighting over a guy. Not just any guy, but Sky. Mr. Sky by-the-book Tate, the poster child of S.P.D." Syd said.

Z laughed at the sound of Syd's voicewhen she said "the poster child of S.P.D." and she smiled herself. "Yeah, we should go to Kat and get examined, we must've come down with something," Z said playing along with Syd.

Syd and Z both laughed for awhile before the room fell into a comfortable silence with the exception of a few snickers here and there. Syd put a more serious look on her face. "Thanks Z. You've been so nice to me and I don't even deserve it after I attacked you the other day," Syd said.

Z had a serious look on her face as well. She walked over to Syd's bed and sat down beside her. "You're wrong Syd," Z said. She looked over to the broken home pregnancy test lying on the floor. "After what you just found out, you deserve all the kindness I've shown you and then some."

XXXXXXXXXX

Back at the foster home, the children's foster dad scooped up the naked, unconscious children in his arms after he had whipped them unconscious with his leather belt. He opened his closet door and threw them in his closet. He shut the door and locked it.

"That'll teach them to respect me," he thought to himself. He decided to go to a bar and get himself drunk. This was a routine for him. He went to the bar every night and got himself drunk. He had become a regular at the bar. Alcohol made him even more violent and abusive if that was even possible. He stopped at the doorway of his bedroom. He stared over at the closet. A sadistic smile appeared on his face after he reflected on what he had just got done doing to them. He headed out to the bar.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sky had landed the S.P.D. ship at the Academy. As Sky stepped out of the ship, he saw Cruger running towards him. Soon, he was being hugged by the alien dog.

"I'm so glad you're back safely," Cruger said still hugging Sky. Sky was shocked with the way Cruger was behaving. It was very unprofessional not to mention un-commander-like of him. He returned Cruger's hug not knowing exactly how to react in a situation like this.

"Where are the kids?" Sky asked.

Cruger stopped hugging Sky and took a few steps back. He cleared his throat. "Their foster parent took them," Cruger replied knowing they meant as much to Sky as Sky meant to Cruger.

There was silence as those words seemed to hang in the air. Sky frowned at first. Then, he clenched his fists. "He's not their father! They are victims of mental and physical child abuse. He should have his foster parent license revoked," Sky said his eyes burning with hatred of which Cruger never seen before in Sky. The next thing Cruger knew, Sky was leaving the Academy in search of them. Sky had a pretty good idea where to look.

XXXXXXXXXX

Jack was walking down one of S.P.D.'s many hallways, when he passed by Bridge's room. He saw Bridge was lying on his bed. He couldn't tell if he was asleep or not. Even if he wasn't, Jack was probably the last person he'd want to see. It bothered Jack so much that Bridge was still afraid of him. Jack knew that he had made a mistake and he regretted it, but the damage appears to have already been done. It appears to be unfixable. He knew that he might regret this, but he knocked on the door.

Bridge's eyes opened at the sound of the knock. Bridge had been asleep. The operative word being had. He was upset that someone had woken him from his sleep. "What do you want?" Bridge asked sitting up and seeing Jack standing in the doorway to his room.

"Did I wake you?" Jack asked.

Bridge rubbed his eyes and let out an obnoxious yawn. "What do you think?" Bridge snapped.

Jack put his hands up in surrender. He had never seen Bridge like this before. Usually, he was the cheerful member of the team. It was a rarity to see Bridge angry, but this appeared to be one of those rare occasions. "I was looking for someone to talk to. I think talking to someone would make me feel better," Jack said.

Bridge rolled his eyes. "You want to talk to someone? Go talk to a wall!" Bridge exclaimed.

The next thing Jack knew he was pushed back and the door to Bridge's room slammed in his face.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Over in the room that Z and Syd shared, Syd and Z were bonding. It really was amazing how well they were getting along with each other now considering how not too long ago, they couldn't stand to be around each other.

Syd and Z were still seated side by side on Syd's bed. "I don't know what I'm going to do," Syd said.

Z put a hand on Syd's shoulder. "You don't have to think about that right now. Just try taking it one day at a time," Z replied.

Syd sighed. She felt her eyes begin to water again. She bit her lip and fought back her tears not wanting to cry again. "I've always wanted children, but not now. I'm only nineteen years old. I'm still young. At the same time, I couldn't put my child up for adoption after it grew inside of me for nine months. I'm sure I'll feel a strong connection to it, yet I'm content with my life just the way it is now. I've been an Olympian. I've won beauty pageants. I'm on the front of multiple issues of Miro magazines. I've recorded a cd that has gone double platinum. Being here at S.P.D. means everything to me. Sure I love being the center of attention and being a celebrity, but as a ranger I feel important. Like I'm actually making a difference in the world. I wouldn't want to give that up for anything," Syd said.

Z nodded her head understanding what Syd meant. She was happy that she decided to become a power ranger. Playing the role of Robin Hood was nice and it brought smiles to the faces of the less fortunate citizens of New Tech City, but Z had always wanted to be a part of something bigger, something that made a difference.

"I know what you mean," Z said aloud.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Sky was at the front desk of Social Services. He was talking to a secretary that was around Sky's age.

"Did a really tall, big guy come here recently with a little boy and girl?" Sky asked the secretary.

The secretary shook her head yes.

Sky was relieved to hear he was on the right track. "Do you know where they went?" Sky asked.

The secretary looked back down at the paperwork on the desk she was seated at. "I'm afraid I can't disclose that information," she said.

Sky took out his badge and held it in front of him. "I'm S.P.D. Now will you tell me?" Sky asked.

The secretary saw the badge. Then something just dawned on her. She looked at Sky's uniform and saw the blue on it. "You're going to have to leave or else I'll call the cops," the secretary said.

Sky couldn't believe what he had just heard. He could swear this secretary knew more than she was letting on. Almost like she was deliberately hiding something. "You seem to forget that I am a cop," Sky said.

The secretary stood up from her seat and backed up a few steps. "He said that you attacked him and left him for dead," she said.

Sky was furious that the story she was told was blown out of proportion. He was starting to lose his patience with the secretary, but he kept his cool. "That was a lie. Look, those kids are in danger. They told me he physically and verbally abused them," Sky said calmly.

"That can't be true! He's been a licensed foster parent for three years. Those two were his first and only children that he's been a foster parent to. If those kids were being abused, we would know about it," the secretary said.

Sky couldn't help but lose his patience. He pounded his fist on the desk. "Do you think five year old children or for that matter anyone who is a victim of physical and verbal abuse would feel comfortable enough telling people they were being abused? Of course they wouldn't. They are fearful that they will be abused even more if their abuser finds out they told someone," Sky said.

What Sky said made sense to the secretary. "But then how did you know?" she asked.

Sky shrugged his shoulders. "I have no idea why, but for some reason they trust me and are really attached to me," Sky answered.

The secretary looked into Sky's eyes and could tell he was telling the truth. She sighed. "I'm sorry for doubting you. They live in 911 Magnolia Street," the secretary said.

"Thank you," Sky said before turning around and heading out the doors.

The secretary watched Sky as he left. "Whoa! Nice ass! Great bod! Damn he's hot! He has such gorgeous eyes! I didn't see a ring. I wonder if he's single? Crap, I should've asked him for his number. Hell, I didn't even get his name. Sometimes I can be so stupid!" the secretary thought to herself.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sam was floating around as a ball of a light. One plus from being a ball of light is that he could easily eavesdrop on people without them noticing him. He knew he shouldn't but he couldn't help being snoopy. He floated by Jack's room and saw Jack sitting on his bed facing the wall. If Sam's ears weren't deceiving him, he could've sworn that Jack was talking to the wall.

"This is just great! Bridge is mad at me. Syd is furious at me. Even Z is angry at me. Not to mention Sky who disappears almost as soon as he appears. I can't figure out why Syd isn't happy that we are going to have a baby! I'm so excited to be a father. Of course, I wish I hadn't got Syd pregnant the way that I did, but still. But it wasn't my fault. I was going insane in prison. Wait. No. Syd's right. I need to take responsibility for my own actions. At the end of the day, I was the one who raped her. Damn it! Sometimes I wish I didn't get jealous so easily! I can't help the fact that I am overprotective of those whom I care about! I'm such an idiot!" Jack said out loud.

Sam cleared his throat. Jack spun around nearly falling off his bed in the process. "You got no argument from me there! By the way, why are you talking to a wall?" Sam asked.

Jack was embarrassed that Sam had been listening. "How much did you hear?" Jack asked.

Sam thought about it for a second. A grin appeared on his face. Well, not really his face since he was in his ball of light form. "Not much really. Just a little here and there. And everything in between," Sam answered.

Jack got out of his bed and chased the ball of light.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sky had arrived at the address he was given. He walked into the house. Nothing appeared to be out of place. Sure things weren't kept as properly as Sky would've preferred, but it wasn't like it was messy inside or anything.

"Hello? Is anyone here?" Sky asked.

There was silence. The silence was broken shortly thereafter by a response.

"We're in here," came two voices that sounded very familiar to Sky.

Sky followed the sound of the voices into the master bedroom. He called out to them again to pinpoint their exact location because there was nobody in sight.

"Where are you?" Sky asked.

"In the closet," the boy and girl replied.

Sky saw the door to the closet was locked. He unlocked it and opened the door.

"Oh my God!" Sky exclaimed at the sight before him.

To Be Continued…

Note: Whew. Another chapter finished. I know I haven't named the orphan boy and girl or their foster dad, but I can explain. I was never one to be good at naming people. It just isn't my cup of tea. So, I thought why not leave it up to the reviewers? I want the names to be a true reflection of the characters though, so I haven't been able to come up with anything good, not that I could to begin with because of the aforementioned reasons. As you've probably figured out by now reading the chapters of this fanfic, the kids are victims of child abuse and the foster dad is an abusive alcoholic. Who knows? I might end up using the names you suggest. (Probably better than anything I can come up with!) Scratch that. More than likely, I will use the names you suggest. I tried to bring some humor back into my fanfic without sacrificing the drama and seriousness of it. Hopefully I pulled it off. If not, well I tried. This is my longest chapter to date, so I apologize if it was a bit on the lengthy side for you. If this is a problem for you, let me know and I will keep that in mind. I know I sound like a broken record, but thank you guys so much for reviewing my fanfic. I appreciate all your reviews and support. Crimson Mystery, thank you for your constructive criticism. I tried to follow your advice and will continue to do so. I'll try to update this on a daily basis. If you guys are lucky, you'll get more than one update in a day. Uh don't hold me to those statements though. Hehe. Thanks again.


	15. Chapter 15

Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers or McDonald's.

**Dissension within the Ranks**

Chapter 15

Sky's jaw had dropped open as he saw the naked boy and girl huddled in a corner of the closet. They were shivering. Sky saw the welts on their backs and the blood all over a good portion of their torsos.

Sky shook himself out of his shock. "What happened?" Sky asked.

The children didn't answer, but just kept shivering.

Sky decided to worry about how they got like that later. He decided that they needed to get some clothes on because they were cold. "Where's your room at?" Sky asked.

The kids got out of the closet and walked to their room with Sky following. Sky pulled out clothes from their dressers and gave it to them. "Here put these on. You'll be much warmer," he said.

They dressed themselves. Sky helped them when they needed it. He looked at his watch and saw that it was seven in the evening. A thought came to Sky. "Have you guys had any dinner yet?" Sky asked.

They shook their head no. That didn't really surprise Sky though. He knew that more often than not children who were physically and verbally abused also were neglected and undernourished. "How about I take you two to get something to eat?" Sky asked.

They shook their heads yes and each grabbed one of Sky's hands.

"You know, if I'm going to be your daddy, I think I should know what your names are. I'm Sky, and you are?" he asked them.

"I'm Chris," the little boy answered.

"I'm Simone," the little girl replied.

Sky helped them onto his Patrol Cycle. Then he got on. "Hold on, ok?"

It wasn't long before Sky pulled up to a McDonald's. They went in the restaurant.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Over in the Command Center, Cruger was pacing back and forth nervously. He knew if it came down to it, Sky could more than hold his own. However, he couldn't shake the feeling that every time Sky went off on his own like this, something bad will happen to him. He hoped his feeling was wrong though.

Kat had a good idea what was troubling Cruger. "I'm sure Sky's fine Doggie," Kat said.

Cruger stopped pacing and looked over at Kat. He glared at her. "How do you know that?" he snapped.

Kat sighed. She's known Cruger for quite some time now. She knows each and every nuance of his behavior. She is fully aware of how short tempered Cruger really is. It's like if you say something he doesn't want to hear or believe, he'll bite your head off. "He probably went to find those two kids," Kat said trying to calm Cruger down.

Cruger resumed his pacing. His arms were clasped behind his back. "I know, that's what worries me," Cruger commented.

Kat wasn't sure what Cruger meant. "If you're that worried about him, just contact him. That way you'll know for sure that he is fine," Kat suggested.

Cruger's ears perked up. He couldn't believe he didn't think of that before. He picked up his morpher and contacted Sky.

"Sky here," answered the blue ranger.

"Where are you at? Are you ok? How long before you'll be back?" Cruger asked one question after another.

Kat slapped her forehead with her hand. From the way Cruger was firing off questions, he really did sound like Sky's father.

"I'm at McDonald's. I'm fine. Once Simone and Chris finish eating, we'll be back," Sky replied.

Kat and Cruger both looked at each other when Sky had mentioned the names of the people he was with. They both had looks on their faces like I don't know who that is.

"Chris and Simone?" Cruger asked.

Cruger could hear Sky laughing. He let out a growl. Sky apparently heard the growl and stopped his laughter. He cleared his throat before speaking again. "Chris and Simone are the names of the two orphan children you met earlier today," Sky answered.

Cruger breathed a sigh of relief. God forbid Sky actually having a life outside of S.P.D. "I want you home now!" Cruger ordered.

Kat burst out laughing. Cruger looked over and glared at Kat. He let out a growl. He didn't like being laughed at. He was the commander after all damn it!

"They're finished now. We're on our way. Sky out," the blue ranger said.

XXXXXXXXXX

Jack was in the recreation room. He was exhausted from chasing a ball of light around the Academy. The omega ranger was quicker than Jack had thought. He just decided to give up trying to catch him and plopped down on a couch.

Just then, a female walked into the room. She looked to be around Sky's age. She had blond hair that was pulled back in a ponytail. She had sky blue eyes. She must like to tan, because she had a tanned complexion that wasn't overly tanned, but just enough. She was wearing a black strapless top that only covered a portion of her cleavage. She had a really short lavender skirt on. She was wearing black knee high socks and black high heels. Jack couldn't help but notice how pretty she looked. He looked her up and down and noticed that she stood about five feet nine inches. He was fascinated by her long legs.

The female noticed that Jack was staring and started to get uncomfortable. "Excuse me. I'm looking for someone," she said.

Jack hoped he was the one she was looking for. Once he had laid eyes on the woman in front of him, he forgot completely about Syd, Z, and all the other pretty girls he had met. He realized he was staring and immediately stopped. "Um…Hi. I'm Jack, and you are?" he asked.

The young woman noticed the red uniform Jack was wearing. It was very similar to the one the guy who had asked about the orphan kids earlier at Social Services was wearing. The only difference was that his uniform had blue on it. "I'm LeAnn, can you take me to the blue ranger?" she asked.

Jack furrowed his eyebrows. "Why would you want to see Sky? Is there something I should know about?" Jack asked jealous at the thought of LeAnn and Sky having a relationship.

LeAnn sighed dreamily. "So Sky is his name. Aw, that's such a cute name. Hehe. His name is Sky and he's the blue ranger," she thought to herself. She then remembered that Jack had asked her a question. "Uh, what did you ask me again?" LeAnn asked.

Jack let out a frustrated sigh. "I asked why you wanted to see Sky. Are you two seeing each other or something?" Jack asked not doing a very good job of hiding his jealousy.

LeAnn picked up on his jealousy. She had a somewhat evil thought. "Would that be a problem if I was seeing Sky?" she asked.

Jack's jaw dropped open. "Wait a second. You and Sky? Since when? Why didn't I know about this?" Jack asked.

LeAnn burst out laughing. She started to say something but was overcome with laughter again. Her side started to hurt from laughing so hard.

Jack loved it when she was shaking with laughter. He watched her cleavage bob up and down. "Are those real or implants?" Jack thought to himself seeing how large they were.

LeAnn had finally calmed herself down. "I'm just kidding. Sky and I aren't seeing each other, but could you take me to him? I have some business to discuss with him," she said.

Jack was relieved to hear that Sky and LeAnn weren't seeing each other. At least not yet. That meant he still had a chance. Jack thought how LeAnn was the girl of his dreams. Of course he had a tendency to think that of every pretty girl he came across. "I don't think he's back yet," Jack answered.

XXXXXXXXXX

Bridge was passing by the room that Syd and Z shared just as they were coming out.

Bridge smiled. "Oh, hi!" he said.

Syd and Z were relieved to see it was Bridge. They had hoped it wasn't Jack. They weren't ready to see him. Not yet anyways.

"Where are you off to?" Syd asked.

"Well, I was getting hungry, so I was going to go to the cafeteria to get something to eat which by the way have you two ate dinner yet? So anyways, I was trying to figure out what exactly I was in the mood for. I thought maybe a cheese and avocado omelet no wait maybe a peanut butter and banana sandwich, but then I thought maybe I should have some toast. I mean you can't go wrong with toast with it being buttery and all," Bridge rambled. He put his fingers close to his mouth and wiggled them upon saying the word 'buttery'.

After hearing Bridge's lengthy explanation, Z rolled her eyes. Syd mock snored. That made Z giggle.

Bridge had a confused look on his face. "What did I say?" he asked.

Syd and Z both laughed at Bridge's cluelessness. Syd put her arm around Bridge and the three of them headed to the cafeteria.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sky entered the command center. Cruger rushed over to Sky and embraced him in a hug nearly bowling over Chris and Simone in the process.

"Thank goodness you are safe. You have no idea how worried I was! You should have a curfew! I really don't like the idea of you being by yourself at this time of night!" Cruger remarked.

Kat and Sky exchanged glances with each other. Their faces both read "o…k…" After what seemed like an eternity, Cruger released Sky from his embrace.

"No offense sir, but I am an adult. I'm twenty years old. I don't need a curfew. Besides, what do you mean 'this time of night'? It's only eight o'clock!" Sky exclaimed.

Kat couldn't help herself. She started laughing hysterically. She slapped her hand on her knee and stamped her feet on the ground. Sky chuckled to himself after seeing how Kat reacted. Cruger glared at Kat but she was too busy cracking up to notice. Even Chris and Simone were smiling.

Cruger continued to glare at Kat, but seeing that tactic wasn't working he growled. Kat still proceeded with her laughing fit. He then turned to Sky. "I'm you commander. If I say you need to have a curfew, then you will have a curfew. Do not question my judgment Cadet Tate," Cruger commanded.

Kat finally was able to contain herself. She was doubled over in pain from laughing so hard. She was clutching her ribs.

Sky saluted. "Yes sir. If I may ask, what is my curfew going to be? 5:30?" Sky asked.

Kat burst out laughing once again. This time she fell flat on her face after having lost her balance from laughing so much. Sky, Chris, and Simone laughed as well.

Cruger looked from Sky to Kat, then back to Sky. He was trying to figure out what was so funny. He looked at Chris and Simone. "What is so funny?" Cruger asked.

XXXXXXXXXX

Bridge, Syd, and Z were on their way to the cafeteria, when they passed the recreation room. The door was open and they saw Jack with a really beautiful woman. Bridge's jaw dropped at the sight of the woman. Syd pushed Bridge's jaw back up only to have it fall again after Syd removed her hand.

Z stepped into the recreation room with her hands on her hips. "What exactly is going on here?" Z asked.

LeAnn and Jack turned their attention to the doorway where the pink, green, and yellow rangers stood. The green ranger's jaw was still practically on the floor.

LeAnn gave the pink, green, and yellow rangers a warm smile. She was just glad someone else finally came into the room. She was starting to get really uncomfortable with Jack staring at her. "Hi! I'm Leanne!" she said offering her hand for them to shake.

Syd shook her hand. "I'm Syd,"

Z shook LeAnn's hand. "The name's Z,"

Bridge shook LeAnn's hand. "I'm…I'm…I'm…I'm…" Bridge stuttered.

Jack, Z, Syd, and LeAnn laughed at Bridge.

Syd spoke up for Bridge seeing how he wouldn't be able to introduce himself properly. "That's Bridge," Syd said pointing towards the green ranger.

Z tilted her head. "Can we help you with anything?" Z asked with a tone of rudeness.

Before LeAnn could say anything, Jack spoke up for her. "She has to talk to Sky about something," Jack explained.

It was LeAnn's turn to interrupt Jack. "Yeah I just wanted to talk to my boyfriend about our date tomorrow night," Leann lied.

Syd and Z both exchanged looks at each other. Bridge found himself staring at LeAnn's cleavage.

"Boyfriend?" Syd and Z asked simultaneously.

Jack chuckled softly. LeAnn was pulling the same trick on the others that she had pulled on him awhile ago. It appeared to be working too. Syd and Z both appeared to believe it.

LeAnn giggled. "I'm just kidding. He's not my boyfriend although I wouldn't mind it if he was. He's smoking hot! I'm the secretary at Social Services. Sky had asked me earlier where the orphan kids, Chris and Simone, lived. I came here to tell him that I talked to their social worker and informed him about Sky's intention of adopting the kids," LeAnn explained.

"Adopting?" the four rangers asked all in disbelief.

A ball of light floated into the recreation room. "Hey Jack, what's the matter? Did you give up trying to catch me? You know it would've been so much easier if you…whoa!" Sam said seeing LeAnn.

LeAnn shrieked. "What the heck! A talking ball of light!" she yelled.

Sam transformed into his ranger form. "Hi there beautiful! I'm Sam!" Sam said offering LeAnn his hand to shake.

XXXXXXXXXX

Over in the command center, Kat was on her feet after recovering from her laughing fit.

Sky walked over to Kat. "I need to have you examine Chris and Simone. You know, run some medical tests on them. Their foster dad did something to them. They won't tell me what though," Sky whispered in Kat's ear.

Kat nodded her head. She then walked over and took the two children's hands in her own. "Come on you two. Come with me," Kat said gently.

Chris and Simone jerked away from Kat. "No! Not without Sky!" they shouted. They folded their arms over their chests. Their faces showed they were pouting.

Sky walked over to them and knelt beside them. "It's ok. Kat's just going to take a look at you two. Don't worry. She won't hurt you. I'm not going anywhere. You'll see me soon," Sky said.

Chris and Simone nodded their heads and followed Kat to the infirmary.

Sky rose to his feet and turned around and looked at Cruger.

Cruger walked over to Sky and put a hand on his shoulder. "I heard what you told Kat. I have a feeling that as long as you're with them, they'll be fine," Cruger said reassuringly.

Sky gave Cruger a smile of thanks. He then left the command center to find the other rangers and tell them he was back.

XXXXXXXXXX

At Gruumm's ship, Giganis was given new orders by the emperor himself.

"Forget our old plan of controlling the blue ranger's mind. With Broodwing turning on me, that plan will no longer work since we don't have the means to control his mind. Instead, I want the blue ranger dead!" Gruumm commanded clenching his fists.

Morgana stepped forward. Morgana without a doubt was the brains of the operation. Gruumm may be a powerful emperor that's conquered many planets and galaxies, but he wasn't exactly the sharpest tool in the shed. Luckily for him, he had Morgana who was excellent at devising strategies to bring down S.P.D. and the meddlesome rangers.

"I know just how he can do it. Destroying his morpher is the key. I believe he is linked to his morpher. It is the source of his power. Destroy it and you will destroy him," Morgana explained.

Gruumm shook his head in approval. "Excellent Morgana! Excellent!" Gruumm said.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Sky found the other rangers in the recreation room. There was a woman with them. He could've sworn he'd seen her before, yet something about her was drastically different.

"What's going on here? A meeting?" Sky asked out loud.

Everyone turned their heads to see Sky enter the recreation room. LeAnn shrieked and ran over to Sky. She put one arm around Sky. She took her other hand and was rubbing Sky's chest. "There you are Sky! I've been waiting for you!" LeAnn exclaimed.

Z folded her arms over her chest and Syd did the same. They were upset how LeAnn was practically flinging herself at Sky.

Sky looked at the woman whose arm he was wrapped in. "Two things. One, how do you know my name? Two, don't you think that outfit is a little inappropriate to wear at Social Services?" Sky asked.

LeAnn giggled. "The red ranger, whatever his name is, told me your name. I don't wear this to work. I got off work at 7. I went home and changed into something more comfortable," LeAnn answered.

Jack grunted at the fact that LeAnn had forgotten his name.

Syd and Z both looked at each other. "Comfortable?" they both thought to themselves.

LeAnn was disappointed that Sky hadn't asked her what her name was yet. She decided to express her disappointment. "Don't you want to know what my name is?" she asked.

Sky scratched the back of his head. After a bit of hesitation he said, "Uh yeah sure."

LeAnn squealed. Z rolled her eyes. Jack, Bridge, and Sam simply stared at LeAnn.

"I'm LeAnn. Hey, listen. I came to tell you that I talked to Chris and Simone's social worker and he wanted me to tell you that he hired an attorney that he'd like you to meet tomorrow for lunch at the new restaurant downtown," LeAnn stated.

Sky broke free from LeAnn's grip. LeAnn was disappointed when he did so. She could stay in his arms forever. "Attorney? What do I need an attorney for? The new restaurant downtown? It doesn't have to be that fancy! I heard that place is expensive!" Sky said.

LeAnn put her hands on her hips. "You **do** want to adopt Chris and Simone don't you?" she asked.

The other five rangers in the room watched Sky intently. They also were wondering the same thing.

Sky didn't even hesitate. "Of course I do!" he exclaimed.

LeAnn flashed her pearly whites. She reached into her purse and pulled out a business card. "I thought so," she said. She handed Sky the business card. She made her right hand in the shape of a phone and held it up to her ear. "Call me," she said winking at Sky. She started to leave the recreation room. She stopped in her tracks and turned around. "Sky, could you walk me to my car. I'm scared to walk alone," LeAnn said.

Z shook her head in disbelief.

Syd let out an "Oh my gosh!"

Bridge, Sam, and Jack were disappointed that LeAnn hadn't asked **them** to walk her to her car. They certainly wouldn't mind the least bit.

Sky rubbed the back of his neck thinking of his response. "Uh sure," Sky answered.

LeAnn squealed and linked her arm through Sky's as the two of them walked out together. Shortly after, Z and Syd both left the recreation room following Sky and LeAnn.

"Wow!" Bridge, Jack, and Sam said all at once.

"She sure is something," Jack said.

Sam and Bridge nodded their heads in agreement.

"LeAnn is drop dead gorgeous!" Bridge remarked.

"I couldn't agree more!" Sam added.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sky and LeAnn had reached the parking facility. Sky opened the car door for LeAnn.

"Why thank you," LeAnn said.

Sky shut the door after LeAnn had got in. LeAnn put the keys in the ignition. She rolled down the window.

"Alright, well I'll call you in the morning," Sky said.

LeAnn smiled. "I'll be looking forward to it. By the way, thanks for walking me to my car," LeAnn said.

Sky shrugged his shoulders like it was no big deal. The next thing Sky knew, LeAnn had planted a kiss on Sky's lips. Soon after, LeAnn was pulling out of her parking spot. LeAnn and Sky waved goodbye to each other.

Meanwhile, hiding behind a pillar were Z and Syd.

"Did you see that?" Syd asked.

"I can't believe she kissed him!" Z exclaimed.

Syd and Z leaned forward to get a better view, when they knocked over the garbage can in front of them. It made a loud crash as it spilled on the ground. Sky turned over to see the pink and yellow rangers. Syd and Z laughed nervously.

Sky walked over to his female teammates. "Were you **spying** on me?" Sky asked.

Z scooped the spilled contents of the garbage into the trash can and walked over and emptied it into the dumpster.

"Nope, just taking out the trash. Well, now that we got that done, let's go Syd," Z answered.

Sky laughed at Z's attempt to cover up the fact that they were spying on LeAnn and him. "Nice try, but one, I heard you two talking before the trash can fell and two, that trash can was already there, so you weren't taking out the trash," Sky said.

Z and Syd looked down at the ground. Their shoes had suddenly become very interesting to them. They started to blush. They didn't dare look at Sky. They spun on their heels and made a dash for their room.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Chris and Simone's foster dad just got back from the bar and found a note on the front door. It read:

Marcus,

I hereby inform you that Sky Tate has expressed interest in adopting your children, Chris and Simone. We have been informed by Mr. Tate that you have physically and verbally abused Chris and Simone. You now have a court case on your hands. Mr. Tate has himself an attorney, and I suggest you do the same because it sounds like you'll have quite a fight on your hands.

Chris and Simone's social worker,

Ryan

Marcus crumpled up the note and threw it over his shoulder. He entered the house and went straight to the master bedroom and opened the closet. He found it empty. He went around and checked the rest of the house. There was no sign of Chris or Simone.

"Damn you blue ranger!" Marcus hollered slamming his fist into the nearest wall punching a hole in it.

To Be Continued…

Note: Thanks to Crimson Mystery, sye04, Beautiful-Me89, DisneyHeart, KendrixAimeeOliver, NightMistCrystal, sky's girl forever, NinjaStorm4Life, and monkay-pooh for reviewing my fic. A big thanks to Crimson Mystery and Beautiful-Me89 for the name suggestions. I tried to make you both happy by using the names that you both had suggested. I find it kind of funny that the orphan boy is named Chris and the actor that plays Sky is named Chris Violette, but then again I'm weird like that, so I'm probably the only person who finds that kind of ironic. I hope you enjoyed the chapter. You have no idea how good it feels to come back from a day of classes and read positive reviews. Please review unless you don't have anything nice to say (Is that what is meant by no flames? I'm sorry if that sounds like a stupid question, but hey I'm a "newbie" or however the heck that's spelled) or unless you're just going to criticize me and not offer anything constructive. I'll try to get an update up tomorrow sometime.


	16. Chapter 16

Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers.

**Dissension within the Ranks**

Chapter 16

Sky headed to the infirmary to check on Chris and Simone. He had said that they'd see him soon. Sky was one to keep his word. If he said he would do something, it was a guarantee that he would do it. He entered the infirmary and found Chris and Simone each asleep on an infirmary bed. This disappointed him a bit because he had hoped to see them before they fell asleep.

Kat walked over to Sky after she saw him in the infirmary.

"I finished running tests on them a little while ago. They don't weigh as much as children their age should. Other than that, they appear to be healthy. As for the welts on their backs, I suspect that their foster father whipped them with something," Kat said.

A look of horror appeared on Sky's face. Kat noticed that Sky was crying. That was the first time in all the years that she'd had known him that she had seen him cry. Sky didn't even try to hold his tears back. He just let them fall freely. He hated how Chris and Simone had been treated. No child deserved to be treated like that. Kat hugged Sky as he cried his heart out.

XXXXXXXXXX

Syd and Z had their pajamas on and were lying in their beds. They weren't asleep though. They couldn't possibly sleep after what they had just seen. As much as they tried not to think about how LeAnn kissed Sky, their thoughts seemed to wonder back to that subject.

"Did you see how she threw herself all over Sky?" Syd asked.

Z thought it was funny how she was just about to say the exact same thing.

"How could I not?" Z replied.

Even though they really didn't know LeAnn that well, they already hated her. After all she was hitting on their man.

"Her boobs are so not real. She totally got a boob job," Syd commented.

Once Syd said that, Z recalled how Jack, Bridge, and Sam had stared at LeAnn's breasts practically the whole time she was in the recreation room earlier that evening.

"Yeah and who wears clothes that revealing? Her outfit practically screamed 'slut'!" Z remarked.

Syd was shocked at Z's comment, but she agreed wholeheartedly with it. It was like LeAnn was trying to draw people's attention especially the attention of a certain blue ranger. The room fell silent as the yellow and pink rangers laid in their beds and stewed.

XXXXXXXXXXX

After Sky had stopped crying and Kat reassured him that Chris and Simone would be fine in the infirmary for the night, Sky headed to go to bed. It had been a long eventful day. He entered the room that he and Bridge shared to find Bridge sitting up on his bed in his pajamas. Sky knew what that meant. Bridge wanted to talk. Bridge started to say something but before he could Sky put a finger to his lips signaling for Bridge to hush.

"At least let me get ready for bed, then we can…talk," Sky said.

Bridge was excited. There was so much he wanted to talk to Sky about. He hoped that Sky would give him LeAnn's phone number. Sky got out of his uniform and folded it neatly and placed it in his laundry basket. All that Sky was wearing was navy blue boxers. Sky didn't like sleeping in pajamas. He thought they were too confining. Instead, he slept in just his boxers.

Once Bridge saw that Sky got in his bed, he started talking.

"So LeAnn sure is hot isn't she? I fell in love with her from the moment I laid eyes on her. She must think I'm a dork because I couldn't even introduce myself. She captivated me with her beauty and left me speechless which is weird huh? I mean I'm not one to be silent because I like to talk. You guys often tell me to shut up because I talk too much. I hope she doesn't think I'm a dork. Did you see what she was wearing? I've never seen a woman look that good! So, you know how she handed you her business card? Well, I was kind of sort of wondering if I could have her number. If a woman like that can leave me speechless, then she must be something special right? How did you meet her anyways? She might have told us, but I was too distracted to pay much attention. You're not interested in her are you? I mean not that that would be bad. It's just that well Syd and Z are both interested in you, so that means that LeAnn is not taken, which would mean that I could still have a chance. I mean I've never had a girlfriend before and I'm not exactly the type of guy that girls are dying to go out with like you. She's too good for Jack. I mean Jack probably thinks LeAnn is the girl of his dreams and everything, but knowing him, he probably thinks that about every girl. Did you see how I said 'girl' and not 'woman'? That's the difference between Jack and me. He calls them 'girls' while I give them the respect they deserve and call them 'women'. As far as Sam is concerned, he shouldn't even think twice about hooking up with LeAnn. I mean who knows when we'll find a time portal for him to travel back to his own time. It could be tomorrow, so yeah those two definitely shouldn't go out. Besides, who'd want to go out with a ball of light? It's kind of freaky. Not to mention how it is like an inter-species relationship. Wait a second. Is a ball of light considered a species? If not, then what species is Sam? I mean he's not human. He's not really alien. So what does that leave? So yeah Sam should find his significant other in his own time not in our time," Bridge rambled.

Sky just laughed and rolled his eyes. He nestled his head in his pillow and closed his eyes.

XXXXXXXXXX

The next morning, Cruger and Kat received a transmission from Supreme Command. The face of Supreme Commander Fowler Birdy appeared on the viewing screen.

"Cruger, I have gotten wind of what has happened at Earth. I think you know what I'm referring to. I'm talking about the actions of one of your rangers, the blue ranger. I heard that he nearly killed civilians by trapping them beneath a force field. I'm sure you are well aware of what the punishment is for such actions. It is no different than if a criminal or monster commits such an act. Any individual who causes a ruckus on a planet and puts the citizens of the planet in danger, shall be banished from the planet no exceptions. I know you haven't defeated Gruumm yet, but I'm afraid I can't bend the rules. I have to treat each and every case the same. If I bend the rules for Sky, I'd have to bend the rules for others as well and I can't allow that. He is to be relieved of his ranger status and dismissed from S.P.D. I will be arriving at your Academy in two days to personally escort him off the planet. Supreme Commander Fowler Birdy out," Birdy said as the transmission ended.

Kat and Cruger couldn't believe what they just heard. They couldn't even begin to think of how they'd break this news to Sky. Sky had lived his childhood dream. He had become a power ranger like his dad. That was something he'd wanted ever since he was a little kid. They both knew that this news would crush him.

"This isn't right! His mind was controlled! Sky wouldn't put civilians in danger intentionally!" Cruger roared slamming his fist into the wall.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sky woke up to find Chris and Simone on top of his bed looking at him.

"Yay! You're awake!" Chris exclaimed hugging Sky.

Simone's lower lip protruded out as she pouted. "You didn't tell us good night!" she said.

Sky kissed her forehead. "Good morning! How's that?" Sky asked.

Simonestopped poutingand hugged Sky. Bridge was awake too and was so touched how close Chris and Simone were to Sky. Sky was the last person Bridge saw as being a good father, but after seeing how he interacted with Chris and Simone, he had no doubt in his mind that nobody else deserved those two kids.

"Why don't you two get some breakfast? Bridge will show you where to go. I'll be there shortly. I have to make a phone call first," Sky said.

Chris and Simone didn't really want to leave Sky. They wanted to be around him all the time, but they did as they were asked. They followed Bridge as he led them to the cafeteria. Sky pulled out LeAnn's business card and called her. This was the first time he'd used his cell phone in a long time. The only people that needed to contact Sky were at the Academy, so they could just contact him through his morpher. So he really hadn't used his cell phone in a long time.

"Hello?" LeAnn answered.

"LeAnn, it's me Sky," Sky answered.

There was silence as LeAnn put the phone to her chest and screamed in excitement. Sky actually was calling her. After she had collected herself, she put the phone back up to her face.

"Hey there! good morning!" LeAnn greeted.

Sky was wondering why there had been so much silence after he had told her who he was over the phone.

"So, what time do you want me to show up at the new restaurant downtown for lunch?" Sky asked.

On the other end of the phone, LeAnn was grinning from ear to ear. There was a slight detail that she had left out when she had asked Sky to show up at the new restaurant for lunch.

"You know how I told you that Chris and Simone's social worker wanted you to meet your attorney today for lunch?" LeAnn asked.

Sky wondered where exactly LeAnn was going with this. He had a feeling he had an idea of where she was going with it though. Though he hoped his feeling was dead wrong.

"Yeah?" Sky answered.

"Well, I'm your attorney," LeAnn said.

Sky slapped his forehead with his hand. That was what he feared she was getting at. He was sure LeAnn was thrilled to be his attorney.

"Wait I thought you were a secretary?" Sky asked.

LeAnn smiled. "I am, but I'm also an attorney, your attorney. Small world isn't it?" she answered.

Sky couldn't believe this turn of events. He had a feeling that this "business meeting" would be more like a date considering how his attorney was hitting on him and throwing herself at him last night.

"Yeah a small world," Sky replied. He was wondering how he got himself into this mess. He thought that once Syd and Z were told LeAnn was his attorney, they would flip. A smile appeared on his face as he remembered howhe caught themspying on him last night.

"So, I'll see you at noon for lunch," LeAnn said. "Bye Sky."

"Bye," Sky answered before hanging up.

XXXXXXXXXX

Chris, Simone, and the other rangers were eating breakfast in the cafeteria.

"Where's Sky?" Syd asked.

Chris and Simone were wondering the same thing. It's not that they didn't like the other rangers, but they much rather be around Sky. Just then Sky walked in and plopped down on chair. He looked like he had a lot on his mind. He noticed that Syd and Z were blushing.

"What?" Sky asked.

Syd and Z giggled. They debated whether or not they should tell him. They kind of liked the idea of not telling him even better.

Z didn't really want to, but she decided to tell him. "Are you going to get dressed or are you going to stay in nothing but your boxers all day?" Z asked.

Sky had completely forgotten about getting dressed. After his call with LeAnn, all he could think about was how she snuck a fast one on him by being his attorney. He ran out of the cafeteria in embarrassment. Syd and Z were cracking up. Bridge and Jack chuckled.

Syd lightly hit Z in the shoulder. "Why did you tell him? I happened to be enjoying the view. I've never seen Sky in nothing but his boxers before," Syd said.

Z hadn't heard what Syd said. She was dreamily thinking about how in shape Sky was. This was the first time she had seen him shirtless. He had a well defined chest and a nice six pack. Z never realized what a great body Sky had. Most of the time it was covered up by the S.P.D. uniforms they were required to wear. Stupid uniforms.

XXXXXXXXXX

At Social Services, Marcus entered the doors. He was furious. He slammed his fist on LeAnn's desk. This action startled LeAnn.

"Where are they? Where are my children?" Marcus demanded.

LeAnn was torn. She had a duty to tell him where they were since he was their foster dad, but at the same time, he didn't want to tell him they were with Sky because as angry as he was now, she was afraid Sky would get hurt.

Marcus was getting impatient which is not hard for him to do. He wrapped his hand around LeAnn's throat and started strangling her. LeAnn gasped for air and tried to free herself from his grasp. Her efforts were all in vain because Marcus was near seven feet tall and weighed close to three hundred pounds so he easily overpowered her.

"The blue ranger has them doesn't he? That son of a bitch!" Marcus growled still choking LeAnn.

LeAnn desperately wished that she had Sky's phone number. If he knew what was happening, he'd be right over. She's the damsel in distress who needs her knight in shining armor. Unfortunately for LeAnn, she didn't have Sky's phone number. Also, she was the only one working at Social Services at this time of morning.

"Answer my question!" Marcus yelled.

LeAnn tried to, but she couldn't with Marcus choking her. Her vision started to blur and she was beginning to feel lightheaded. Then, everything went black.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sky returned to the cafeteria this time with his uniform on. He knew the others were going to tease him so Sky just braced himself. 3, 2, 1.

"I always wondered if you were a boxers kind of guy," Syd commented.

Sky glared at Syd. The other rangers were laughing at Sky.

"Isn't it against S.P.D. regulations to go into a common room half naked?" Z asked before bursting out laughing. Syd, Bridge, and Jack joined in the laughter.

Sky had a thought. He knew what would get them to shut up. Well, Syd and Z at least.

"I called LeAnn this morning and found out she's my attorney," Sky said.

The jaws of Syd and Z dropped and their eyes widened. Yep that did the trick. Even Jack and Bridge stopped laughing. They were feeling jealous at how much time Sky was getting to spend with LeAnn.

"It sounds like your business meeting for lunch will be more like a date," Z remarked.

Sky hated that Z said that. He agreed with her, but why did LeAnn have to be his attorney? From the way LeAnn had been throwing herself at Sky recently, they probably wouldn't get much accomplished at their so-called business meeting today.

"It's not a date," Sky replied. Z and Syd had looks on their faces that said otherwise. Sam floated into the cafeteria in his ball of light form.

"Sam, you should've been here," Jack said seeing the ball of light was in the room.

"Yeah you missed it," Bridge added.

"Sky came in here in just his boxers. It was hysterical," Syd said.

Sky rolled his eyes. He really wished they would just let it go. However, he had no doubt they would be bugging him about this for quite some time to come. He was no longer in the mood for this so he left the cafeteria. Chris and Simone ran after him.

In the hallway, Sky practically ran right into Cruger and Kat.

"Sky, I'm glad I found you. I don't know how to tell you this, but I'm going to have to ask you to hand over your morpher and resign from S.P.D. Birdy is going to be here in two days to escort you off Earth," Cruger explained.

Sky couldn't believe what he had just heard. Sky wondered why Cruger didn't try to stop Birdy. With that one sentence Cruger said, everything he's worked for his entire life just went up in smoke. Sky forcefully slammed his morpher into Cruger's chest. Cruger took the morpher. Cruger saw the hurt and betrayal in Sky's eyes as Sky brushed past him and went to his room to pack tears streaming down his cheek.

To Be Continued…

A/N: Ok, so this fic is coming to an end. This probably won't last any longer than twenty chapters. I don't know how many are left. 2-4 probably. I have an idea of what I want to write about, so it's just a matter of putting my ideas on paper. Please R&R! It really makes my day coming back from class to find I had received reviews. Thanks to those who reviewed and remember, no flames.


	17. Chapter 17

Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers.

**Dissension within the Ranks**

Chapter 17

Sky was in the middle of packing his things when Bridge entered the room that he and Sky shared. He froze in place as soon as he entered. He couldn't figure out why Sky was packing. S.P.D. meant everything to Sky. Bridge knew that Sky has worked his entire life to be where he is today. He couldn't figure out why he'd give that up.

"Why are you packing? Are you going somewhere?" Bridge asked.

Sky didn't even bother looking at Bridge. He just continued to pack which made Bridge wonder if he even heard his question. Bridge noticed that tears were rolling down Sky's cheeks.

"Maybe you should ask your commander," Sky said rather unemotionally.

Bridge wondered what Sky meant by that statement. As far as he knew Cruger was Sky's commander too. Then, that is when the realization settled in.

"Did you get fired or stationed somewhere else or something?" Bridge asked hoping it was the latter reason rather than the former. Bridge noticed something that he hadn't before. Sky wasn't wearing his S.P.D. uniform. He was wearing street clothes. He had on a blue tank top and khaki shorts. His uniform lay on the corner of his bed neatly folded up. On top of his uniform was his morpher. Bridge realized what that meant.

"I got fired Bridge. In case you didn't know, I tried to suffocate civilians under a force field. Birdy is going to come to personally escort me off Earth in two days," Sky stated.

Bridge knew this must be tearing Sky apart. The worst part of it was that Sky was under mind control when that incident with the civilians happened. Everyone knew that Sky would never do that to civilians intentionally. Bridge couldn't believe what he heard Sky say. He heard him, but it just hadn't set in as being true yet. Bridge saw Sky as a kind of big brother as well as his best friend. He didn't want to lose him. He didn't want him to go away and never be able to see him again.

"It wasn't your fault though!" Bridge exclaimed. He had wanted to say more than that, but he simply couldn't find the right words to say.

Sky had finished packing. He picked up his suitcase and put the duffel bag over his shoulder. He headed out the door. He stopped in the doorway and turned around to face Bridge.

"Tell Cruger, my morpher and uniform is on the bed," Sky said before turning around and leaving the room.

XXXXXXXXXX

Cruger and Kat were in the command center. Cruger was visibly upset. He hated himself for being more concerned with keeping his job than to stand up for and defend Sky whom he viewed as his own son.

"I hate this! I don't agree with Birdy's decision at all! Sky deserves to be here just as much as any of us!" Cruger exclaimed.

Kat was bothered by this whole ordeal as well. She secretly wondered why Cruger didn't just say that to Birdy in the first place. She was angry that Cruger was so willing to throw his relationship with Sky away just to please Birdy.

"You hate this? You have a funny way of showing it!" Kat shouted.

Cruger looked at Kat with wide eyes. He couldn't believe that Kat thought he was betraying Sky. He was just following Birdy's order though he didn't agree with it. That's the way the S.P.D. hierarchy works. Though he admittedly did feel kind of selfish for rather having Sky lose his job instead of him.

"I care about Sky like he was my own son!" Cruger barked.

Kat scoffed at that statement. She shot Cruger a glare. "That's bullshit Cruger and you know it! You just fired him for Pete's sake!" Kat hollered.

Cruger started growling. He did not like the tone of voice that Kat was taking with him. He did outrank her after all. Cruger knew that it was a bad sign when Kat referred to him as 'Cruger' instead of 'Doggie'. That usually meant that she was angry with him. It wasn't like Cruger enjoyed firing Sky. He hated it more than anything, but knew that it was something he had to do no matter how difficult it would be. Just then, Bridge entered the command center.

"Cruger, Sky told me to tell you that his morpher and uniform are lying on his bed," Bridge said.

Kat and Cruger exchanged worried glances with each other. They knew it would not be safe for Sky to be out on his own. Gruumm was more than likely looking for him. Not to mention that Marcus seems to have a bone to pick with Sky for expressing interest in taking custody of Chris and Simone. They knew that Sky wouldn't take the news well, but Birdy wasn't coming for two days and they had hoped that Sky would stay at the Academy until then. They ran out of the command center to find Sky before it was too late.

XXXXXXXXXX

Jack, Z, Syd, and Sam were just coming out of the cafeteria, when they saw Sky with a duffel bag draped over his shoulder and wheeling a suitcase behind him.

"Sky, what's going on? Where are you going?" Syd shouted.

Sky turned around to face the four rangers. Tears were still streaming down his cheek. He didn't know what to say to them. His heart was broken in two. He was left speechless.

"Were you just going to leave without telling us?" Z asked hurt.

That question was like a knife to Sky's already shattered heart. He cared about his teammates more than anything. They were not only his friends, but his family. They were all he had left with his parents both being deceased as well as his butler, William. It hurt like hell for him to leave them, but what choice did he have? A rule is a rule.

"Why aren't you in your uniform?" Jack asked seeing how Sky was dressed in civilian clothes.

Sky didn't answer right away. He tried to fight back the tears so he could answer without his voice breaking. "What do you think? Cruger fired me! Birdy's coming to personally escort me off this planet in two days, but in the meantime, I am no longer associated with S.P.D. so I have no reason to stay here," Sky answered before turning away from them. He couldn't take to see the hurt in their eyes. The way they felt like he was betraying them. That was far from the truth.

"Sky!" Chris and Simone shouted running down the hallway towards Sky.

Sky knelt down on the ground so he was on their level. From there, the two young children could clearly see Sky was crying. They never saw Sky cry before. It frightened them.

"Why are you crying?" Chris asked.

Sky was thinking of how to tell them what had just happened not too long ago. How could he possibly put it in words so that five year olds could comprehend it? That was the least of his worries. What was far more urgent was where was he going to stay? How would this affect Sky's chances of getting custody of Chris and Simone? Would Chris and Simone even still want him for a father?

"I lost my job. I have to leave Earth in two days. Until then, I can't stay here anymore," Sky said hoping they would understand.

They were too young to understand. They looked at each other with "Do you know what he just said?" faces.

"We can come with you right?" Simone asked.

Chris and Simone both put on their very best puppy dog faces with their hands clasped to show that they were begging.

"Actually, I was wondering if you could stay here for a little bit. At least until I get done with my business meeting with LeAnn," Sky answered.

Jack, Z, Syd, and Sam were shocked. They wondered how Sky could possibly still be up for the business meeting after the bombshell that had just been dropped.

"You mean your date?" Syd asked.

Sky snickered and rolled his eyes. "I told you it's **not** a date!" Sky answered.

Syd and Z rolled their eyes in response. They put on "whatever" faces.

"So you want us to baby-sit?" Jack asked.

Sky nodded his head yes. He rose to his feet.

"I better go. I don't want to be late," Sky said. He turned around and continued to head out of the Academy.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sky was walking down the streets of New Tech City when he noticed that people seemed to be afraid of him. They didn't seem to forget how he had nearly killed civilians by trapping them beneath a force field. Parents grabbed their children and pulled them back when they saw Sky approaching. They clutched onto their children tightly.

"Go on! Get out of here! You're not welcome here anymore! You're a monster!" civilians shouted at Sky.

Those words stung badly. They didn't understand that his mind was under control. Sky was beginning to think that maybe him leaving Earth was what was truly best for everybody. He couldn't believe people were afraid of him. He used to be a part of S.P.D. He used to be a power ranger for crying out loud. The people he was supposed to protect shouldn't be afraid of him, yet they were. Sky tried not to let their response and their words get to him, but the truth was they did get to him. Things had gone so badly for Sky as of late. First he was fired from S.P.D., and then he found out that civilians are afraid of him. He continued to walk toward Social Services trying not to pay much attention to what civilians were shouting at him and calling him.

XXXXXXXXXX

Kat, Cruger, and Bridge nearly bowled over Jack, Syd, Z, and Sam outside of the cafeteria.

"Where's Sky?" Bridge asked.

Bridge got no response. He noticed that it looked like Jack, Syd, and Z were about to go off on Cruger though. Not that he blamed them though. He would do the same thing if he wasn't such a chicken. So long as they were going to go off on Cruger, maybe he'd join in. After all, there's strength in numbers.

"What the hell were you thinking firing Sky?" Z shouted.

"Are you insane? He's one of our best fighters!" Jack added.

"You might as well gift wrap him and deliver him to Gruumm!" Syd yelled.

Cruger looked at the red, yellow, and pink rangers in shock that they were venting their frustration on him. He felt it should be Birdy that was subjected to their frustration and not him. Kat on the other hand, thought Cruger deserved every bit of it.

"Do you have anything to say to me?" Cruger asked Bridge.

Bridge swallowed a lump that was beginning to form in his throat. He did view Sky as his best friend and like a big brother, so he should defend him, but Cruger was putting him on the spot and all of the focus was on him. He saw Syd, Z, and Jack look at him like they were telling him to say how he feels. Then he looked at Cruger who had hope in his eyes. Hope that he wouldn't go off on him like the others did. Bridge was torn.

"I…um…am going to sit this one out," Bridge finally managed to get out.

Jack, Syd, and Z let out frustrated sighs. Cruger on the other hand looked relieved. Kat had widened her eyes at Bridge's response.

"Look, I had no choice. I have to follow the chain of command and Birdy is my boss. When I told Sky, I didn't mean he had to leave right away," Cruger said.

"I'm bored!" Chris complained.

"Me too!" Simone added.

"When's Sky coming back?" Chris asked.

"Yeah we want Sky!' Simone exclaimed.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sky had arrived at Social Services and found the door standing wide open. There was a body prone on the floor. As he got closer he noticed who it belonged to. It was LeAnn.

"Oh my God! LeAnn! Are you ok? What the hell happened to you?" Sky hollered checking for a pulse. He was relieved to find one. He noticed the blood on LeAnn's neck from where Marcus' hand was when he was strangling her.

LeAnn's eyes slowly opened. She couldn't believe what she saw when she opened her eyes. It was like a dream. It seemed too good to be true. She got butterflies in her stomach at the sight before her.

"Sky? How'd you get here? Where am I? What happened?" LeAnn asked unaware of her surroundings after being unconscious for awhile.

Behind a plant lurked Marcus with a knife in his hand.

"I got you now pretty boy!" Marcus thought to himself.

To Be Continued…

A/N: I'm extremely sorry it has been so long since I last updated. I guess this is what happens when I have three stories going on at one time. I figured I'd update this story while I had an idea for the chapter in my head. I also didn't want those of you who do read and enjoy this fic to feel like I had forgot about this story or was neglecting it or anything of that nature. I know I had said that I was going to conclude this story by Chapter 20, but now I'm not so sure I can get everything crammed into three more chapters. I guess I just had an idea that 20 was a nice number to end the story at, but it doesn't have to be the end. Honestly, more than 20 chapters would be nice because that was one of the reasons why it took me so long to update. I was trying to figure out how to get all my ideas I had incorporated into the 3-4 chapters I said there would be left. By the way, I said I had ideas in my head about what I wanted to happen in this story, but that by no means, that I had 3-4 chapters already written. Ideas are far from actual written chapters. So much more has to be elaborated on and developed in order for ideas to become chapters. What do you guys think? Should I go longer than 20 chapters? Should I not put a cap on the length of this story at this point in time? I'll try to update soon, but between class, and two other fics that I've started, I can't give you a set date on when I'll get the next update up. Thanks to those who have reviewed. Thanks to those who have listed this story as one of their favorites. Thanks to those who have listed me as one of their favorite authors. I'm truly grateful for that. This may be my first fic, but you guys have made it an enjoyable experience. Please read and review and no flames please. Thanks.


	18. Chapter 18

Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers.

**Dissension within the Ranks**

Chapter 18

Jack, Syd, Z, and Bridge were taking turns babysitting Chris and Simone. They drew straws to see who would get the first shift. Unfortunately for Jack, he drew the shortest straw. Jack, Chris, and Simone were in the recreation room. Jack had fetched some comic books from his room and gave them to Chris and Simone to read. It hadn't even been long since he gave them the comic books when the silence was broken.

"You're no fun!" Chris complained.

Jack was shocked. He happened to love those comic books they were reading. Besides, he liked to think that he was way more fun than Sky. Sky and fun don't even belong in the same sentence unless the word not is included. Jack had no idea why they liked Sky so much.

"These comic books are boring!" Simone whined throwing the comic book she was reading at Jack.

Jack let out a sigh. The comic books he gave Chris and Simone to read were his favorites, and they called them boring. Jack was at a loss for words. One thing was for sure though. Even though his shift just started, Jack couldn't wait to pass off the babysitting job to someone else.

"Well what do you want to do then?" Jack asked sounding slightly irritated.

Chris and Simone exchanged glances with one another. It was almost as if they knew what each other was thinking without speaking.

"Some babysitter you are!" Chris and Simone muttered under their breath.

Jack heard their remark though. He was fighting a strong desire to phase out of this room and let someone else watch Chris and Simone. Jack glanced at his watch. He tried to remember how long they agreed each shift would last. Hopefully it wasn't for much longer, because he didn't know how much longer he could put up with these two kids. If anything, Jack developed a newfound respect for Sky through all this. If Sky could tolerate extended periods of time with Chris and Simone, then Jack commends him for being able to do something that he could not.

"How about we watch some television? Do you two like cartoons?" Jack asked.

Chris and Simone ran over to the television and plopped down on the floor in front of it. Maybe just maybe Jack found something that they actually enjoyed doing.

XXXXXXXXXX

At Social Services, Marcus came out from behind the plant he was hiding behind and started to sneak up behind Sky with the knife raised.

"Sky, look out behind you!" LeAnn cried.

Sky spun around and waved his arm around in a circle. The force field he created sent Marcus flying backwards into a wall. The knife fell from his hand in the process. Sky stood in front of LeAnn so as to protect her from Marcus. Marcus picked himself off the floor.

"You'll pay for that!" Marcus warned.

Marcus picked the knife up off the ground and made his way over to Sky. He stabbed downward, but Sky caught his arm. Sky was struggling against the strength of the much bigger Marcus. Sky kicked Marcus in the gut. Then he kicked Marcus' hand sending the knife flying out of his hand. Marcus threw a punch at Sky, but Sky ducked. Sky swept Marcus' legs out from under him with a leg sweep.

"Yeah! Go Sky!" LeAnn cheered. She was enjoying this. She was the damsel in distress and her knight in shining armor came to rescue her.

Marcus got up to his feet and threw a punch at Sky. Sky sidestepped it. Sky knew that Marcus was taller and bigger than him, so he would have to rely on his quickness because there would be no way for him to match Marcus in terms of power. Marcus faked Sky out with a punch and then kneed Sky in the stomach. After Sky was doubled over in pain, Marcus scored with a knee lift to Sky's head. Sky stumbled back a few steps. Marcus wasn't about to let Sky get a breather though. He threw another punch. Sky caught his fist and pulled his arm behind his back. Marcus used his free arm to elbow Sky in the temple. Marcus then wrapped his hand around Sky's throat and hoisted him up in the air. Sky was kicking in a futile attempt to free himself. He gasped for air as he felt his windpipes being crushed. Sky tried to free himself from Marcus' grip with his hands, but to no avail.

LeAnn had a look of horror on her face. Her knight in shining armor was losing. She couldn't allow this to happen. She was trying to think of something she could do to help Sky out. LeAnn saw the knife lying on the floor. That gave her an idea. She went over and picked it up.

"Put him down!" LeAnn screamed.

Marcus let out a sinister laugh.

"As you wish," Marcus said throwing Sky into LeAnn.

XXXXXXXXXX

At Gruumm's ship, Gruumm, Morgana, and Giganis were watching the fight between Marcus and Sky unfold. They were all pleasantly surprised with how things were turning out thus far.

"Sky is a sitting duck without his morpher. Now is the perfect time to strike!" Gruumm commented.

Morgana and Giganis nodded their heads signaling they understood. Even though Sky was no longer a power ranger, he still must pay for crossing Gruumm. As for Giganis, not a day goes by that he doesn't think about his former best friend arresting him. That scene played itself over and over in Giganis' head. He had a personal score to settle with Sky. If Giganis had anything to say about it, Sky would pay for betraying him. Any remnants of friendship was gone as far as Giganis was concerned. The only thing he felt towards Sky was hatred.

"If, no rather when we destroy Sky, it will kill the morale of the power rangers. Then, it won't be long until we defeat them and Earth will be ours!" Morgana exclaimed.

Broodwing was lurking in the shadows listening to the whole conversation. He realized Sky didn't stand a chance against Morgana and Giganis without his morpher. Sky was already having a tough time with Marcus and Marcus wasn't even a part of Gruumm's forces. Broodwing decided to make a little trip down to Earth to thwart Gruumm's plan. It felt a little odd to him that he was even considering helping a former power ranger who used to be his enemy, but Sky did save Broodwing from Gruumm. Besides, Broodwing would do anything to upset Gruumm after the way he has been treated by Gruumm.

"What are you waiting for? Get down there and take care of that little worm!" Gruumm roared.

Morgana and Giganis teleported down to Earth. Unbeknownst to Gruumm, so did Broodwing.

XXXXXXXXXX

"This is a re-run!" Simone whined.

"Re-runs aren't any fun!" Chris added.

Jack massaged his forehead. All the whining that Chris and Simone were doing was starting to give him a killer headache. He much rather be battling one of Gruumm's goons than put up with babysitting Chris and Simone. At least Gruumm's goons don't whine and complain 24/7.

"Are you hungry? Do you two want something to snack on?" Jack asked.

"Nah, we're not hungry," Chris answered.

"Just bored," Simone added.

Jack rolled his eyes. He glanced at his watch. He had no idea how long his shift was supposed to be, but enough was enough. Jack was fed up with those two. It was time for someone else to watch Chris and Simone. He took Chris and Simone by their hands and led them out of the recreation room. Jack took them to the room that Syd and Z shared.

"Hey, you aren't supposed to enter our room without our permission!" Syd whined.

Jack felt like banging his head against a wall. First, Chris and Simone whined about practically anything and everything, now on top of that, Syd was whining too.

"You're shift isn't over yet anyways! You still have…" Z started to say.

"I don't care! I'm done! You watch them!" Jack said before leaving the room in a hurry.

Syd and Z looked at one another wondering what they just got themselves into.

XXXXXXXXXX

"LeAnn, are you ok? I didn't hurt you did I?" Sky asked while helping LeAnn to her feet.

LeAnn gave Sky a smile of gratitude.

"I'm fine," she answered.

Just then a purple energy blast nailed Sky in the back knocking him face first into the floor. LeAnn looked to see where it came from and saw Morgana and Giganis. LeAnn bent down to check on Sky.

"Are you alright?" LeAnn asked.

Sky groaned. LeAnn helped him to his feet. Sky saw Morgana and Giganis in attacking stances staring him down. He did not like the looks of this one bit. Without his morpher, he was done for. Even with his morpher, he probably couldn't stand a three on one encounter. Just then, he saw a jolt of electricity knock Giganis to the ground. Then another one knocked Morgana to the ground. Broodwing dropped down from the ceiling. Morgana and Giganis quickly rose to their feet.

"Broodwing, you are supposed to be on our side!" Morgana remarked.

Broodwing burst out laughing. Giganis and Morgana had puzzled looks on their faces as did Sky, LeAnn, and Marcus.

"You are a bigger fool than I thought Morgana! I was never on your side to begin with! I owe allegiance to nobody especially not Gruumm!" Broodwing exclaimed.

Marcus noticed that Sky was preoccupied with Broodwing's entrance and took the opportunity to attack Sky from behind. Marcus punched Sky in the kidney. Broodwing sent Marcus flying backwards with a jolt of electricity. Marcus' chest bobbed up and down rapidly. Giganis transformed one of his arms into a sniper and fired at Broodwing. The shot hit Broodwing full force, but didn't harm him the slightest bit.

"Is that all you got Giganis?" Broodwing asked.

Morgana sent energy blast after energy blast from her daggers at Broodwing. Each one connected, but still no damage was done to Broodwing.

"LeAnn, get out of here! It's too dangerous! You might get hurt!" Sky ordered.

LeAnn looked Sky face to face.

"No! I'm not leaving you! LeAnn yelled.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Rangers please report to the command center immediately!" Kat ordered over the intercom.

"Thank goodness!" Z said.

"Well, it looks like someone else will have to watch you two," Syd said while trying to sound sad.

Chris and Simone followed Syd and Z to the command center.

"Rangers, Sky is in trouble. Morgana and Giganis are attacking him at Social Services," Cruger stated.

"Ready?" Jack asked.

"Hold on, I'm coming too!" Cruger said.

Kat gave Cruger a suspicious look.

"Yeah, I'll go too!" Sam added.

Kat put her hands on her hips. She couldn't believe what was happening. Sam and Cruger were ditching her. They didn't want to be stuck babysitting Chris and Simone, so they made sure they left with the other rangers.

"S.P.D. emergency!" they shouted in unison.

XXXXXXXXXX

"So you thought you could cross me and get away with it Broodwing?" Gruumm said appearing at Social Services.

Gruumm used his telekinesis to lift Broodwing off the ground. With his other hand he smashed the glass case that his head was in with his staff. Broodwing started gasping for air like he was drowning. Gruumm knew all about Broodwing's inability to breathe in Earth's air. That's what the glass case was for. It created an artificial environment that allowed Broodwing to breathe without exposing him to Earth's air. Gruumm started blasting Broodwing with his staff while Morgana was nailing him with energy blasts and Giganis was firing his sniper at him. Sky had to do something to save Broodwing. He waved his arm around in a circle and created a force field. He ran towards the three of them. His force field connected with all three of them sending them flying to the ground and releasing Broodwing from Gruumm's hold.

"Broodwing are you ok?" Sky asked.

There was no answer. Sky noticed that Broodwing wasn't gasping for air anymore. He was too late. Broodwing was dead.

"Foolish human! You dare to take on the three of us?" Gruumm questioned.

Morgana sent energy blasts at Sky while Gruumm fired his staff at him and Giganis shot his sniper. Sky threw up a force field to block the incoming attacks. The three villains kept up the attacks though.

"You can't destroy what you can't even hit," Sky said while maintaining his force field.

Gruumm, Morgana, and Giganis laughed evilly.

"Silly human. You are weak. Your pathetic force field won't last much longer, and then we will rid this planet of your existence!" Gruumm remarked.

Sky was already starting to strain. He knew that Gruumm was right. He couldn't hold up the force field much longer. Sky just hoped the other rangers would find him in time.

To Be Continued…

A/N: I'm sorry it took so long for this update. As you know, school started although since I am in summer school at my college, it never technically ended. I'm trying to buckle down in terms of schoolwork although it's hard because I've been in summer school the whole summer. Anyways, so I have to make a tradeoff. If I devote more time to my studies, then that means I won't be able to update much. On the other hand, if I update often, I won't be able to focus on my studies as much which would probably be reflected in my grades. So I'm sorry, but I don't want to fail or have to retake any classes so unfortunately that means not being able to update all too often. Thanks to everyone who has read and reviewed my fic or just read it. It means a lot to me that you took the time to do so. If you choose to review, no flames please.


	19. Chapter 19

Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers.

**Dissension within the Ranks**

Chapter 19

Sky clenched his teeth as he tried to desperately hold up his force field. Morgana, Giganis, and Gruumm were relentless with their attacks. Sky decided he wasn't going to get anywhere by staying on the defensive the whole time, so he rushed towards his attackers with force field raised.

"Not this time you don't," Morgana said flipping through the air and landing behind Sky.

She sent out energy blasts from her daggers. Sky instinctively let down his force field and spun around to defend himself from Morgana's attacks by putting up a force field. However, that left him wide open to be attacked from behind. Gruumm fired his staff while Giganis shot his sniper. The attacks connected and caused Sky to fly high into the air only to land hard on his side.

"Sky!" LeAnn shouted rushing over to check on him.

Giganis aimed his sniper at LeAnn and fired. Sky tried to get up to save her, but his body wouldn't cooperate with him. His ribs that he had landed on were at least cracked if not broken. Sky watched in horror as the shot from Giganis' sniper hit LeAnn full force. LeAnn fell to the ground in a heap.

"LeAnn!" Sky screamed reaching his hand out to her.

Morgana, Giganis, and Gruumm let out an evil laugh. Giganis had particularly enjoyed causing Sky so much pain. He caused him not only physical pain, but emotional as well.

"Now to finish you off old friend," Giganis said aiming his sniper at Sky.

Giganis was knocked to the ground. Sky saw that Cruger had struck Giganis down with his Shadow Saber. He saw the other rangers had arrived as well.

"S.P.D. We order you to freeze!" Jack said.

Gruumm let out an evil laugh before levitating Jack with his telekinesis. Jack tried to kick and squirm his way free, but it was no good. He couldn't move.

"Put him down!" Z shouted.

Gruumm did as he was asked by hurling Jack at her, Bridge, and Syd knocking them all down. Sky still wasn't able to stand on his feet, but he was able to drag himself over to LeAnn. He checked for a pulse and his heart sank when he couldn't find one. Sky couldn't believe this was happening. So many people he cared about were getting killed. First there was William his butler, and now LeAnn.

"Omega Morpher Electro Mode!" Sam shouted punching Morgana causing her to fly backwards several feet before landing flat on her back.

Giganis had his sniper pointed at Sam, but Cruger slashed him in the back with his Shadow Saber. Giganis fell first to his knees, then face first on the ground. Cruger turned around only to get blasted by Gruumm's staff. Cruger flew backwards into a wall. Jack threw a bone into the air.

"Canine Cannon!" Jack, Bridge, Z, and Syd shouted. "Fire!"

Gruumm stopped the attack in its tracks with his telekinesis before throwing it right back where it came from. The deflected attack created an explosion that sent the red, yellow, pink, and green rangers soaring into the air. They demorphed as soon as they hit the ground.

"Omega Morpher Hyper Mode!" Sam shouted.

Gruumm used his staff to block each and every attack and then shot Sam with his staff at point blank range. Sam flew backwards and crashed through a wall. Gruumm, Morgana, and Giganis turned their attention to Cruger. Gruumm fired his staff, Giganis shot his sniper, and Morgana sent energy blasts from her daggers. Cruger leapt high into the air to avoid the attacks. On his way down he connected with a powerful slash to Giganis. Gruumm caught Cruger with his telekinesis and held him while he and Morgana blasted at him. Cruger could only take so much before he too fell to the ground demorphed.

"LeAnn please don't do this to me! Wake up!" Sky frantically pleaded.

Then he realized that Morgana, Giganis, and Gruumm were targeting him. They fired at him. Sky threw up a force field.

"Do you really think that's going to work? You tried that before and it didn't succeed," Giganis said.

Morgana flipped through the air and landed behind Sky. Sky wasn't going to fall for that one though. Morgana fired energy blasts from her daggers at Sky. Sky reached down and grabbed Marcus with one hand and used him to shield him from Morgana's attacks while using his other hand to hold up his force field. Sky felt Marcus' body go limp, which probably meant that he had just died. He let down his force field and dove out of the way in one swift motion. Morgana was nailed by Gruumm and Giganis and Gruumm and Giganis was nailed by Morgana.

"Sky, catch!" Cruger shouted throwing Sky his blue morpher.

Sky caught it and gave Cruger a puzzled look. Cruger gave Sky a nod.

"S.P.D. Emergency!" Sky shouted.

Gruumm, Giganis, and Morgana picked themselves off the ground and saw that Sky was in ranger form.

"Ranger form or not, you still can't take the three of us!" Morgana boasted.

Sky looked over at the fallen body of LeAnn and then over at Broodwing's dead body.

"That's where you're wrong. You three are going to pay for what you did!" Sky shouted.

Sky formed his Delta Max Striker and blasted the ceiling causing it to collapse on top of Gruumm. Giganis fired his sniper. Sky ran up a wall and back flipped over the blast and nailed Giganis with his Delta Max Striker while in midair. Morgana shot energy blasts at Sky only to have Sky deflect them using his weapon. Morgana leapt into the air and tried a jump kick. Sky caught her leg and swung her around a couple of times before flinging her into Giganis who had just stood back up on his feet. The two of them fell to the ground. Gruumm emerged from the rubble.

"You'll pay for that blue ranger!" Gruumm warned.

He fired his staff at Sky. Sky rolled out of the way and fired his weapon. Gruumm deflected the attack. Just then, Gruumm was nailed by the civilian blasters from Jack, Syd, Z, and Bridge.

"You may have won this battle rangers, but the war is far from over!" Morgana said before she, Giganis, and Gruumm teleported away.

Sky powered down and fell to one knee clutching his injured ribs in pain. Jack, Syd, Bridge, and Z were instantly at Sky's side.

"Sky, are you ok?" Z asked.

Sky nodded his head yes, but the rangers weren't buying it.

"If you are ok, then why are you holding your ribs?" Syd asked.

Sky sighed. He was more worried about how many people he cared about had died to be concerned about his injured ribs.

"Good work cadet," Cruger said patting Sky on the shoulder.

Sam climbed out from the wall and joined the other rangers.

"So, what did I miss?" Sam asked.

Syd and Z helped Sky to his feet. Everyone could see the pained expression on Sky's face. They knew of Sky's physical pain, but they couldn't begin to comprehend his emotional pain.

"Come on Sky. Let's get you back to the Academy. Chris and Simone will be thrilled to see you," Jack said.

XXXXXXXXXX

"When's Sky coming back?" Simone asked.

Kat rolled her eyes. They had asked that question too many times to count ever since she had been babysitting them. She couldn't believe she was stuck babysitting. She worked in the S.P.D. lab not some daycare.

"Yeah we want Sky!" Chris shouted.

Kat was developing a headache. Was shouting really necessary? Being a feline alien, she had better hearing than humans as it was. Kat never looked forward to seeing Sky more than she was now.

"He'll probably be back soon," Kat answered.

Chris and Simone started jumping up and down out of excitement upon hearing that. They couldn't wait.

"Good because you're boring," Chris commented.

"The red guy was funner than you!" Simone added.

Kat was so close to bailing on the two little brats and leaving them unsupervised. She thought she liked kids and got along well with children, but apparently not. It's not like she didn't want to be elsewhere either. Kat much rather be looking through a microscope examining things on a Petri dish than baby-sit Chris and Simone.

"Do you like ice cream?" Kat asked walking over to the food replicator.

Chris and Simone bobbed their heads up and down. Kat punched a few buttons on the food replicator and handed them each an ice cream cone with two scoops of chocolate ice cream.

"Ice cream!" Chris and Simone shouted.

Kat thought at least they couldn't whine, complain, and talk if they were too busy eating ice cream.

XXXXXXXXXX

The rangers pulled up to the parking facility of the Academy.

"Commander?" Sky said.

Cruger looked over at Sky. Did Sky just call him Commander? Were his ears deceiving him?

"What is it cadet?" Cruger replied.

"Why did you give me my morpher back? Does that mean…" Sky started to ask before Cruger put a hand up to stop him.

The other rangers looked at Cruger as well. They too were interested in hearing his answer. They were glad to have Sky back on their team though. It just didn't seem like they were a team without him.

"I've been doing some thinking. I came to the conclusion that I was just afraid of losing my job which was why I thought it was ok that you lost yours. However, I decided that I'm going to fight this. I'm going to defend you and tell Birdy exactly what happened. When that is all said and done, if I lose my job, so be it, but at least Birdie will know the truth. We're a team and that means you too. What happened wasn't your fault. Your mind was being controlled. That's all behind us now. Just now, you saved all of us. You came through when we needed you to. There is nobody else who deserves that morpher more than you," Cruger said.

Sky's eyes started to water and if the other rangers didn't know better, they'd say Sky was going to cry.

"Thank you sir," Sky said while saluting.

XXXXXXXXXX

Over in Gruumm's ship, Gruumm and company were stewing over their recent defeat at the hands of the blue ranger. They were not anticipating Cruger giving him his morpher back.

"I can't believe we were defeated by the blue ranger! Maybe we should lower our standards and go after another ranger. A ranger that is easier to destroy," Morgana said.

Gruumm's eyes glowed red as he glared at Morgana. He let out a growl.

"No! Our plan was to destroy the blue ranger and that is exactly what we are going to do! That pesky blue ranger may have won this round, but I can assure you he won't win the next!" Gruumm exclaimed.

In another part of the ship, Giganis was beside himself. He was absolutely livid. He could not believe that his former best friend had gotten the best of not only him, but Morgana and Gruumm as well. His hatred towards the blue ranger grew even stronger. Giganis was going to see to it that Sky knew that he, not Sky, was the better fighter of the two.

To Be Continued…

A/N: Whew! I finally finished this chapter! Usually I am able to type up an entire chapter in one sitting, but this chapter just wouldn't follow that trend. Needless to say, I stared at a flashing cursor a whole lot while trying to finish this chapter. With that being said, I don't know how good it will turn out. I had originally intended to get this chapter up much earlier in the day, but as you can see, that didn't happen. I want to give a huge thanks to everyone who has read my fic and an even bigger thanks to everyone who has reviewed my fic. I hope you continue to review and tell me what you think. Remember though, no flames.


	20. Chapter 20

Disclaimer: I still don't own PR.

**Dissension within the Ranks**

Chapter 20

The next day, Syd found Jack in the recreation room lying on the couch reading a comic book. She had been searching for him all morning and had just now found him.

"There you are. I need to have a word with you Jack," Syd said.

Jack noticed the seriousness to Syd's tone of voice. He wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

"What's wrong Syd?" Jack asked.

Syd took a deep breath. She didn't really want to tell Jack what she was about to, but he had a right to know.

"I want to have an abortion," Syd answered.

Jack couldn't believe what he had heard. An abortion? Syd couldn't be serious. Jack knew that Syd was far from pleased with how she became pregnant in the first place, but he would never imagined in a million years that she would consider having an abortion.

"No Syd! You can't have an abortion! Need I remind you the child that you are carrying is also mine," Jack replied.

Syd figured Jack would react like this. It wasn't his decision though, not really. He wasn't the one carrying the child. He wasn't the one the child was developing in. She was. She was the one that would have to end up giving birth to the child. Syd didn't want that. It wasn't the right time.

"I'm young Jack. We both are. Now's not the time for us to be worrying about raising a child together. Besides, Gruumm is still out there and we can't afford to be down two rangers because those two rangers are soon to have a bigger responsibility in parenting. The boy or girl that I'm carrying deserves to have two parents whom love each other, and I do not love you Jack. That is why it is best if I just have an abortion," Syd explained.

Jack felt very strongly about the issue of abortion. He was one of those people who strongly opposed it because he viewed it as the killing of an innocent life. He regretted raping Syd. He knew that wasn't the way for the two of them to become a couple. The fact of the matter was though that what's done is done, and there's no going back. Syd may not love him, but he loved her. He hadn't always loved her, but the more he got to know Syd, the more he fell in love with her.

"I've told you time and time again that I'm sorry for raping you. I know that was a mistake. I know I messed up, but an abortion really isn't the answer Syd. You haven't given this enough thought," Jack said.

Syd was getting really fed up with Jack's stubbornness. It was by far his worst quality. How dare Jack tell her she hadn't given it enough thought! She's been thinking about it practically nonstop ever since she first found out she was pregnant. Syd was scared to death about being pregnant and the possibility of her having to give birth to a child.

"If abortion isn't the answer, then what is Jack? Adoption? No! That would still mean I'd have to give birth and I am not giving birth! I knew telling you was a mistake. You really don't have a say in what I do or do not do concerning the child I'm carrying!" Syd retorted.

XXXXXXXXXX

The funeral for Sky's butler had just come to an end. It was a great service very fitting for William. Sky couldn't help but shed some tears during the funeral. So many people were dying and the thing was that they shouldn't have died in the first place. Sky felt responsible for William's death, Broodwing's death, and LeAnn's death. No matter how much people would tell him otherwise, Sky couldn't shake the feeling that he was to blame.

"That was such a touching service," an evil voice sarcastically remarked.

Sky spun around and saw Giganis standing a few feet away from him. He took his morpher out from a pocket in his pants.

"S.P.D. Emer…" Sky started to say before he was blasted with a jolt of electricity.

Sky's morpher fell to the ground as Sky was thrown backwards. Sky picked himself off the ground just time to get slashed in the chest by Giganis' right claw. His claw tore through the tuxedo that Sky had worn to the funeral leaving a bloody slash mark on Sky's chest.

"No matter how hard you tried Sky, you always ended up being second best!" Giganis remarked before kneeing Sky in the gut and throwing him to the ground.

Sky knew that if he could just get to his morpher, he would stand a chance. However, Giganis was being relentless and if it kept up, Sky was a sitting duck. Giganis transformed one of his arms into a sniper and Sky knew that if Giganis connected with that while Sky was unmorphed, he would be done for. Giganis aimed his sniper at Sky and fired. Sky threw up a force field to stop the blast.

"You should have gotten rid of me when you had the chance instead of arresting me and throwing me in jail Sky!" Giganis commented.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Rangers please report to the command center immediately!" Kat announced over the intercom.

It wasn't long before the rest of B-Squad and Sam were in the command center watching Giganis attack Sky on the viewing screen. That was the lowest attacking Sky at a funeral.

"Ready?" Jack asked.

"Ready!" the others answered.

"S.P.D. Emergency!" they shouted in unison.

The other 6 rangers were on their way each in their respective vehicles. Cruger was in his ATV. Sam was on his Uniforce Cycle. Jack and Bridge were on their respective Patrol Cycles. Syd and Z were in a jeep. They just hoped they could get to Sky before it was too late.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sky had just knocked Giganis back with a well placed force field, but that only served to anger Giganis even further. The ferocity with which Giganis was attacking caught Sky completely off guard. Sky had thought that somewhere in there was his former best friend, but apparently he was wrong. While Giganis was recovering from the ill effects of being nailed with Sky's force field, Sky took this opportunity to dive for his morpher.

"S.P.D. Emergency!" Sky shouted.

Sky wasted no time forming his Delta Max Striker. Sky and Giganis fired at each other, but they both were successfully able to dodge the other's attacks. Out of nowhere, there was an explosion and Giganis went sailing through the air. Sky looked to see what had caused the explosion and he saw that Cruger, Jack, and Bridge had fired lasers from their vehicles. Giganis stumbled to his feet. Jack threw up a bone and R.I.C. transformed into the Canine Cannon.

"Canine Cannon! Fire!" the five core rangers shouted.

Just as it looked like Giganis was about to be contained, the blast from the Canine Cannon was suddenly thrown back at the rangers causing an explosion that threw the rangers in different directions demorphing them in the process.

"I don't think so!" Gruumm said.

Morgana also appeared and started firing energy blasts from her daggers. Cruger was deflecting the attacks with his Shadow Saber.

"Omega Morpher Hyper Mode!" Sam shouted throwing a flurry of punches at Gruumm.

Sam was shocked when all of them connected, but Gruumm appeared to be unharmed. Gruumm blasted Sam's Omega Morpher with his staff taking him out of the equation as Sam was reverted to his light mode. Giganis snuck behind Cruger and nailed him with his sniper. Cruger fell down to one knee. Morgana, Giganis, and Gruumm had Cruger surrounded and all fired at him. Cruger leapt into the air and landed slashing Gruumm's staff in two in the process. Giganis turned his attention to Syd. He stalked over to her with his sniper pointed directly at her.

"So is this the girl who's so important to you old friend?" Giganis asked.

Sky was trying to get to his feet to save Syd, but he had taken far more damage than any of the other rangers and couldn't do anything. For the second time in two days, Sky felt helpless. Sky watched in horror as Giganis fired. Just then, Jack leapt in the way, putting his body in front of Syd's in order to protect her. Syd watched as Jack fell to the ground in a heap before her.

"Jack! No!" Syd shouted.

Giganis, Gruumm, and Morgana teleported away satisfied with how much damage they inflicted today.

"God Jack, why did you have to go and do that?" Syd shouted.

She tried to run over to Jack who was only a few feet away. Syd's knees gave out because she was shaking so much, so she ended up crawling over to him. Syd felt horrible for the way she had treated Jack earlier in the day. The things she had said to him didn't make her feel any better either. There was no doubt in Syd's mind that Jack loved her otherwise he wouldn't have thrown himself in the way of Giganis' attack in order to save her. She thought back to earlier when she told Jack that she didn't love him. That had to have broken his heart. Syd didn't think much of it then, but now considering what happened, she started to feel badly about it.

"We have to get him to an infirmary fast! Hang on Cadet Landors!" Cruger shouted.

TBC

A/N: I am so sorry it took so long for me to update this. I used to be really good at updating pretty regularly too. I hate to burst your bubble, but I don't think I will be anymore. I think the only probable days for me to get updates in are during the weekend, which for me is Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays since I don't have any Friday classes this quarter. It also doesn't help that I have three other unfinished stories besides this either. To be truthful, fall quarter didn't start at my college until yesterday, but before that I was at home with my parents, and there are only two computers there which were being used practically all day by my parents, so I didn't really get much of a chance to update at all, so I apologize for that. Well, for all of you hoping I would go longer than 20 chapters with this story, you got your wish as was indicated by the "TBC" at the end of this chapter. I'm sorry this chapter's kind of a little short, but given that it's been 17 days since my last update, I figured it was better than nothing. Besides, I had to end it with a cliffhanger because I can. It's ironic though because I hate it when I'm reading a really good fic by another author and that author ends a chapter with a cliffhanger. Anyways, tell me what you think of this chapter in a review. I still am going to ask for no flames please.


	21. Chapter 21

Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers.

**Dissension within the Ranks**

Chapter 21

Later that day, Sky went to the infirmary to see how Jack was doing. When he got there, he saw Syd seated in a chair next to Jack. Syd had been rooted at that exact spot ever since they had returned to the Academy.

"Hey," Sky said standing in the doorway to the infirmary.

Syd didn't even look at Sky, nor did she even acknowledge that he even said anything to her. She remained rooted to that spot staring at the unconscious Jack.

"Why did he have to go and take the hit for me Sky?" Syd asked.

Sky was surprised when Syd asked him that question. He was surprised she even talked at all. Sky had never seen Syd so distraught before. Usually, Syd is the happy, cheerful, bubbly member of the group. Sky hated not seeing her like that.

"He did it because he loves you Syd. Jack wanted to make sure that you were safe. If roles were reversed, I would have done the exact same thing," Sky answered.

Syd was torn between Jack and Sky. It was Sky that she loved, but Jack loved her. Jack was the father of the child that she was carrying.

"Why do you and Jack feel a need to protect me though? I'm not some damsel in distress. I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself thank you very much," Syd commented.

Sky knew that was certainly true. Syd had managed to prove everyone wrong. Everyone's first impression was that Syd was a rich, spoiled brat who refused to get her hands dirty and who wouldn't last a week at S.P.D. However, Syd had proved them all wrong because she had done better than a week. She's been at S.P.D. for a couple of years now.

"We know that Syd. We don't feel a need to protect you because we feel that you are weak. It's just what people do when they love each other. They make sure that the one they love is safe," Sky replied.

Syd was shocked how Sky kept saying that Jack loved her. That's not what she wanted to hear from Sky. Syd wanted Sky to say that he loves her not that Jack loves her. Sky has known about her feelings toward him for quite some time now, but Sky has yet to come out and say that he loves Syd too.

"Quit saying that Jack loves me Sky! Jack doesn't love me! If he does, it's not for the right reasons! If he does in fact love me, it's only because he feels he has to since he's the father of my child! Do I need to remind you that he raped me Sky?" Syd yelled.

Sky was slightly taken aback that Syd was yelling at him. He and Syd were good friends, and Syd rarely ever has yelled at Sky before. Syd has gotten mad at Sky on numerous occasions, but hardly ever has she yelled at him, at least not like this.

"What do you want me to say then Syd? Ignore Jack for the rest of your life? Well, I'm sorry, but I don't think that's possible. Jack's not a bad guy Syd. So he made a mistake. Everyone makes mistakes. It's a part of being human," Sky said.

Syd couldn't believe that Sky was defending Jack. She thought Sky was on her side. Syd knew that Sky was one of the most objective people she knew, even if that makes him seem cold and heartless, and that's all Sky was doing here was being objective.

"You call raping someone a mistake? How is it a mistake? You don't just accidentally rape someone Sky! When you rape someone, you intend on raping them, so there is nothing accidental about it!" Syd retorted.

Sky knew that raping someone wasn't a mistake. That's not what he meant when he had said that Jack made a mistake. He meant that Jack's thinking that raping someone would get that someone interested in him was a mistake.

"I know you are thinking of having an abortion Syd. I know you well enough that nobody has to tell me in order for me to know. Don't have an abortion Syd. You'll regret it later in life. You may not love Jack right now, but give him a chance. I know you love me and all, but you can't have me. I'm leaving tomorrow, and I will never be able to return to Earth again. Besides, you deserve someone better than me Syd," Sky said.

If Syd didn't know any better, she would say that Sky spoke passionately about the issue of abortion as though he had some experience with it. She wondered what that was all about. Syd hated the fact that Sky had just given up and accepted the fact that he was leaving tomorrow. The Sky she knew, the Sky she loved would fight to the end and never give up.

"Don't give up Sky. Cruger said he is going to fight to have you keep your job. All of us will. There's nobody I'd rather be with than you Sky. Don't you dare put yourself down by saying that I deserve better," Syd replied.

The fact of the matter was Sky was scared to commit to a relationship. He's only been in one relationship before, and it was a serious one. That ended in disaster and ever since then, Sky has been afraid to get involved with someone again.

"Syd, there's something you don't know about me. There's something I've never told anyone before. I have an ex-wife. We were married at 16 years of age and were divorced at 17 years of age. We eloped and got married. We were young and looking back, it was probably a mistake. I mean I'm not going to lie. I did love her, but obviously she didn't love me. After about three months of marriage, she started to grow apart from me and wanted a divorce. I was determined to stay true to my wedding vows, so I refused to allow a divorce to happen. That's when she tried everything in her power to get me to divorce her. She had become pregnant, and I was the father. She ended up having an abortion without even discussing it with me in an attempt to get me to divorce her. She brought dates over to our apartment and dated them right in front of me. I still wouldn't divorce her no matter how badly she was hurting me. Then, after six months of marriage, she just took off and left me. She didn't tell me where she was going. She didn't leave me an address, a phone number, a letter saying where she went, anything. Three months later, I received divorce papers in the mail. I finally gave in when I received the divorce papers because I couldn't take her hurting me anymore," Sky said.

Syd was overwhelmed with all that Sky had just told her. She had no idea that Sky had been through all of that. That explained everything. It explained why Sky felt so passionately about her not getting an abortion. It would explain why Sky was so hesitant to get into a romantic relationship. She felt extremely sorry for what Sky had been through, and if she ever got her hands on the woman responsible for hurting Sky, Syd would kill her. Syd noticed the tears streaming down Sky's cheek after he told his story.

"I am so sorry Sky. I had no idea. Is that why you are afraid to get into a relationship with me? I won't take off and leave you Sky. I would never do that to you. I'm really sorry for the loss of your unborn child," Syd said as she got up out of her chair and went over and hugged and consoled Sky.

XXXXXXXXXX

In the common room, Z was a wreck. She and Jack were really close and Jack was lying in the infirmary unconscious. His condition hadn't improved any since they had returned to the Academy. Jack was like a brother to Z, and Z was so afraid of losing him. Bridge hugged her as she sobbed.

"There, there. It's going to be ok Z. Jack will pull through. He's a fighter. You'll see," Bridge said.

Z desperately wanted to believe what Bridge was saying was true, but she still had her doubts. Cruger had been shot before by Giganis' sniper while Cruger was unmorphed (before Cruger became the Shadow Ranger), and he barely pulled through. Jack wasn't Cruger though. Jack was human.

"I don't know what I would do if anything were to happen to him Bridge. He's our squad leader. He can't leave us. Who would lead the team? It wouldn't feel right if someone else were to lead the team," Z said.

Bridge agreed with what Z had said. It wouldn't feel the same with someone else leading the team. Bridge wondered who would lead the team anyways. Next in the pecking order would be second in command. That was Sky, but Sky was supposed to be escorted from Earth by Birdy tomorrow. If second in command wasn't an option, who would lead the team? As far as Bridge knew, nobody was third in command because such a thing didn't exist. Would he be the leader? He couldn't picture himself leading the team. Bridge saw himself more as a follower than a leader.

"I don't know Z; Try not to think like that ok? I know it's hard, but try not to assume the worst-case scenario," Bridge answered.

Under normal circumstances, Z would be weirded out by Bridge hugging her and for that matter being so close to her, but these weren't normal circumstances, so Z didn't mind. She had no romantic feelings toward Bridge whatsoever. A thought just crossed her mind. Bridge didn't have romantic feelings for her did he? His hugging is just to console her isn't it? Z pulled herself from Bridge's embrace and got up out of the couch.

"I'm going to see if there's been any improvement in Jack's condition," Z said before leaving the common room.

Bridge remained seated on the couch after Z had left wondering if he had done something wrong.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back in the infirmary, Syd was still comforting Sky. All of her guilt for Jack being in the infirmary seemed to wash away once Sky had told her his story. The only thing she felt now was sorry for Sky and angry at his ex-wife.

"Syd, I'm not the kind of guy to step on other people's toes. If Jack is interested in you, which I think he is, then I don't want to do anything to interfere with that," Sky said.

Syd was tired of explaining to Sky that she doesn't love Jack. In her mind, the only person that holds the key to her heart is Sky.

"Sky, we've been through this already. Jack cares about me for all the wrong reasons. He only feels like he has to care about me because he's the father of my child. Now stop bringing up things to keep us apart," Syd said sounding slightly irritated.

Sky couldn't believe that Syd thought he was bringing up things just to get out of a relationship with her. He wasn't doing that. He was simply telling the truth.

"Am I interrupting something?" Z asked appearing behind Sky in the doorway.

Sky and Syd separated at the sound of Z's voice for they had still been in each other's embrace.

"No you're not interrupting anything Z. If you came to check on Jack, he still hasn't improved yet," Sky said in a perfectly neutral tone.

Z glared at Syd. Z didn't like it the least bit that her and Sky had been hugging. Syd wasn't the only ones who had feelings for Sky. Z was there for Syd in her time of crisis, and she repays her by making a move on Sky.

"Oh really? Then why were you two hugging?" Z asked while still fixating her glare on Syd.

Sky detected the tension in the room between Z and Syd. It was so thick you could cut it with a knife. Once again, Sky was in the middle of it.

"Okay enough. Now's not the time to be fighting you two," Sky said.

Syd was glad that Sky had shared his past with her and not Z. Although she did wonder why he shared it with her when he had previously never told anyone before.

"If you two don't mind, I'd like to sit with Jack alone for a bit," Z said.

Sky and Syd left the room and Z took a seat next to Jack.

TBC

A/N: sky's girl forever, BrandonB, princess moon shadow, sye04, Crimson Mystery, redandblack 4eva, and DisneyHeart thank you for reviewing Chapter 20. I am seriously conflicted though right now in that I don't know who I'm going to have end up with whom. One of you wants Jack and Syd to end up together. Another of you wants Sky and Syd to end up together. The rest of you I'm not sure because you haven't explicitly said. I mean don't get me wrong. I still have a pretty good idea of what I want to happen with this story, but it's just that the couple(s) haven't been factored into that yet. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I hope you continue to stick with me for those who have been. If you want to let me know what you think, do so in a review. No flames allowed please.


	22. Chapter 22

Disclaimer: Power Rangers belongs to Disney.

**Dissension within the Ranks**

A/N: So, this past Sunday I finally got around to updating my fics after a seriously long dry spell. This is the only one I hadn't updated yet and that is because I was unsure of whether or not to continue it at all. Of the fics that I have started, I personally feel that this one is my weakest. I feel that I tried to have too many things happen in just this one fic. In that regards, I feel that this fic is kind of all over the place. Then I realized that this fic appears on the favorite stories list more times than any other fic of mine. That has to say something. So I decided to continue this fic after all despite the fact that I also happened to get my most critical reviews from this fic. Whew, that was long, now onto the story.

Chapter 22

Z was seated at Jack's bedside. She wasn't sure whether or not he'd be able to hear her, but there were things she needed to get off her chest, so Z talked to him anyways.

"Oh Jack, why did you risk your life for Syd? Don't you dare leave me! We've been through too much to have you leave me now. Everything's so hectic around here. You're unconscious. Sky's supposed to be escorted from Earth by Birdy tomorrow. If I didn't know any better, Bridge was hitting on me. I caught Syd and Sky hugging. I need you Jack. Please wake up soon," Z said.

XXXXXXXXXX

Sky and Syd were walking to the recreation room. Both weren't speaking to each other as they were too deep in thought. Syd was trying to let all that Sky had confessed to her in the infirmary sink in. Sky was trying to find some way to get Jack and Syd together. After all, Jack was the father, and it would be much easier on the child if its parents were together Sky thought. That wasn't the only thing on Sky's mind though. He was also skeptical as to whether or not Cruger would be able to stop Birdy from escorting him from Earth tomorrow. What about Chris and Simone? Would they be able to come with him in the event that he had to leave Earth?

"I'm going to put Chris and Simone to bed," Sky said.

"Ok," Syd replied.

Syd entered the recreation room to find Bridge propped up against a wall in a handstand position with his eyes closed. For some odd reason, Bridge seems to think better upside down.

"Hey Bridge," Syd greeted.

Bridge opened his eyes and saw an inverted image of Syd. He started talking to Syd while remaining in his handstand position.

"Hi Syd. Z and I were talking, and the topic of who would lead the team in the event that the leader and second in command was no longer an option. So, what are your thoughts on the matter?" Bridge asked.

"Why wouldn't the leader and second in command be an option?" Syd questioned.

Bridge started to waver a bit, so he made a few adjustments and the wavering stopped. "Well, I mean Jack is in the infirmary, and who knows how long it'll be until he wakes up. Tomorrow, Sky is supposed to leave Earth, so who does that leave to lead the team?" Bridge asked.

Syd put her hands on her hips. "Don't say that Bridge. We're supposed to believe that Cruger is going to find some way to drop the charges against Sky, so that way, he won't have to leave Earth," Syd replied.

Bridge came down from his handstand position and looked Syd face to face. "I do believe that Syd, but it's better to prepare yourself for anything rather than get your hopes up that something may happen when it might not," Bridge remarked.

Syd was sick of Bridge saying that Sky would leave Earth tomorrow. She didn't want to hear that anymore, so she left Bridge alone in the recreation room.

XXXXXXXXXX

In the command center, Cruger was trying to come up with a plan of action for tomorrow so that Sky wouldn't have to leave Earth. That wasn't the best idea, because Cruger would then be down a ranger. With Gruumm still trying to take over Earth, Cruger would need all the help he could get. Cruger growled in frustration.

"This isn't fair Kat! Sky has every right to stay here on Earth! His mind was being controlled! There has to be some way to convince Birdy to drop the charges," Cruger said.

Kat agreed wholeheartedly with Cruger. However, Birdy seemed adamant about not dropping the charges. She hated to admit it, but rules were rules. They couldn't just bend the rules for Sky because then they'd have to bend the rules for everyone. It could be argued that rules were meant to be broken, but there was no doubt that Birdy wasn't about to break any rules.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back at Gruumm's ship, Gruumm, Giganis, and Morgana were concocting their next plan of attack. They were fully aware that Birdy would be headed to Earth tomorrow. What better plan than to assassinate the Supreme Commander of S.P.D.? The only question now was how to go about doing just that.

"My blaster should be able to do the trick," Giganis said. "It almost did the trick when I tried to assassinate Cruger, and surely Birdy can't be as tough as Cruger."

"Why should you get to have all the fun?" Morgana complained.

Gruumm's eyes glowed red. "Silence! I can't think with all of your bickering!" Gruumm shouted.

"I still don't get why we just don't attack them with a frontal assault?" Giganis asked.

Morgana scoffed. "Please, are you really that stupid?"

"I said quiet! If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself," Gruumm stated. "Believe me, I will."

XXXXXXXXXX

The next morning, Kat announced the arrival of Supreme Commander Fowler Birdy over the intercom. All of the cadets and staff of S.P.D. assembled in the transport bay awaiting Birdy.

Birdy stepped out of the S.P.D. ship and all the cadets and staff saluted him. Birdy walked up to Cruger.

"I believe you know why I am here Cruger," Birdy said.

Cruger growled in response. "I do, but I will not let you take Sky away from us," Cruger answered.

"You don't have a choice in the matter Cruger. I am your superior and you'd be wise to remember that," Birdy countered.

Observing all of this from an air vent above the entrance of the loading bay was Gruumm. He had disguised himself as a lower level cadet and easily walked right into the Academy without anybody noticing a thing. He climbed into the air vents and navigated his way to the loading bay. Now that he was there, he had transformed himself back into Gruumm and had his staff in his hand poised to fire at Birdy.

"Sky is a power ranger. He's not some criminal!" Cruger shouted.

"Rules are rules Cruger. He endangered the public at large and now he has to deal with the consequences of that just as anyone else would," Birdy replied.

"You're not being fair! His mind was being controlled! You know as well as I that he would never voluntarily put innocent people in danger!" Cruger yelled.

"Watch your tone Cruger. Do you want to lose your job?" Birdy asked.

"If it means letting Sky keep his," Cruger answered.

Birdy laughed. "Cruger, your getting fired wouldn't stop me from firing Sky as well. Is that what you really want? Do you want the both of you to lose your jobs?" Birdy asked.

Cruger growled. He didn't like this fowl one bit. He hated the fact that he was his superior.

Gruumm removed the screen to the air vent and fired his staff at Birdy. Nobody saw it coming, and the next thing everyone knew, Birdy was lying on the ground flat on his back with a little bit of smoke coming off his body.

"Over there!" Bridge shouted pointing to Gruumm retreat back into the air vent.

"Help me get him to the infirmary," Kat said to some lower level cadets as they tended to Birdy.

This was déjà vu for Sky. It was all too familiar to when Dru, as Giganis, tried to assassinate Cruger. The only difference is there was a different target and a different assassin.

"He's hardly breathing," Kat announced as she checked Birdy for a pulse.

"We have to stop Gruumm," Sky said.

Cruger put his arm in front of Sky holding him back. "No! Let him go. I don't want to risk anyone else getting hurt," Cruger replied.

Sky wondered what would happen now. Would he still have to leave Earth today? If so, who would accompany him? His escort that was supposed to accompany him just got shot by Gruumm. There were so many questions racing through his mind.

**Once again, I am so sorry that it took me so long to update this, so please try to find it in yourselves to forgive me. I also realize that this is somewhat shorter than my usual chapter length for this fic, but I figured that it's been so long since I updated this that you all wouldn't mind. Besides, I thought that was a fitting place to end this chapter. I still have ideas in my head about what I still want to happen with this story, and I just didn't want to get into any of those ideas yet. If you're not too mad at me, I hope you'll leave a review. I'll take constructive criticism, but not flat out flaming. Thanks for reading.**


	23. Chapter 23

Disclaimer: PR SPD belongs to Disney.

**Dissension within the Ranks**

Chapter 23

"Are you sure you want to go through with this?" Kat asked.

"Yes I'm sure. Now are you going to do this or not? If you aren't, I'll find someone else to do it instead," Syd answered.

Kat sighed. She wished that Syd hadn't asked her what she had asked her. Sure Kat may be a doctor, but she usually didn't handle stuff like this.

"Did you discuss this with Jack? I think he has a right to know Syd," Kat said.

Syd glared at Kat. "I can't talk to Jack because he's still unconscious. Besides, it's not even his decision to make. It's my decision and mine alone. I've already made up my mind," Syd stated.

Kat feared this was how Syd would react. "I'm sorry Syd, but even though you may be willing to go through with this, I can't. You'll have to find someone else to do this. I'd never be able to live with myself if I went through with this," Kat said.

Syd didn't answer Kat. She just stormed out of the S.P.D. lab. 'I'm sorry Sky,' Syd thought to herself.

XXXXXXXXXX

In the command center, Birdy had come to his senses not too long ago, and already he and Cruger were arguing with one another.

"Sky is a power ranger! We need him here on Earth!" Cruger yelled.

"Don't take that tone with me Cruger! Do I need to remind you that I am your superior?" Birdy replied.

Cruger pounded his fist on a computer console in frustration. "How dare you pull rank on me! Sky's mind was being controlled! It wasn't his fault! Besides, no harm was done to any civilians!" Cruger hollered.

"That still doesn't change the fact that he endangered the lives of innocent civilians! If I have anything to say about it, I'll see to it that that doesn't go unpunished!" Birdy retorted.

"Why are you so adamant about him leaving?" Cruger asked.

"Why are you so adamant about him staying?" Birdy responded.

"I asked you first!" Cruger remarked.

"I'm your superior!" Birdy commented.

Cruger and Birdy were at a bypass. Each was too stubborn to surrender to the other. Neither was willing to compromise either. It was either their way or no way at all.

XXXXXXXXXX

In the recreation room, Sky was talking to Bridge and Z about what was going to happen now. They weren't aware of the fact that Birdy was conscious and arguing with Cruger at this very moment.

"Maybe this means that you'll be able to stay after all," Z said hopefully.

"I don't know Z. I'd like to believe that's what will happen, but Birdy seemed dead set on me being escorted from Earth, so I don't think he'll be changing his mind anytime soon," Sky commented.

"Do you guys know where Syd went? I haven't seen her since Birdy got shot," Bridge remarked.

Kat entered the recreation room. "She went to have an abortion," Kat stated.

Shock was evident on the faces of the yellow, blue, and green rangers. They knew this had been a difficult time for Syd, but they never in a million years expected this to happen.

"I told her she should talk this over with Jack before she made any rash decisions, but she refused to discuss it with him. She said that it was her decision to make," Kat said.

Sky was in complete disbelief. He and Syd even had a talk about his ex-wife getting an abortion without discussing it with him. Sky thought he made his stance on the matter quite apparent to Syd, but it must not have mattered to her. Syd's getting an abortion resurfaced some old wounds of his.

"I can't believe she would do something like this!" Z said to no one in particular.

Nothing more was said. The four of them were in mutual agreement on how they felt about the matter.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Back in the command center, Cruger and Birdy were still going at it. Things weren't going any better than before though.

"Birdy, Gruumm is still at large. There's strength in numbers, and if you take Sky away from us, that would give Gruumm an advantage. Furthermore, Gruumm might be able to take over Earth, so do you really want to put the future of Earth at stake over a stupid rule?" Cruger asked.

"Oh please Cruger! What do you take me as some kind of fool? Supposedly, these cadets are the best cadets you've ever had, so what difference does it make if I take one away? I hate Gruumm just as much as you do-" Birdy started to say.

"You will never be able to comprehend how much I hate Gruumm! Nobody hates Gruumm more than me!" Cruger shouted.

"You're just begging for me to fire you aren't you Cruger?" Birdy asked.

"These are the best cadets I've ever had. I am disgusted that the supreme commander of S.P.D. is willing to put the well being of Earth and for that matter the well being of S.P.D. in jeopardy!" Cruger remarked.

"What are you saying Cruger? Are you saying that you could do a better job than me?" Birdy questioned.

"I could do a better job than you with two hands tied behind my back and a blindfold covering my eyes! Unlike you, I have my priorities straight! I know that the safety of Earth is far more important than debating whether a rule was or wasn't broken," Cruger said.

"That's the thing Cruger. Rules are meant to be followed not broken," Birdy stated.

Cruger growled. This had been going on for far too long now. He had had it with Birdy's stubbornness. He could barely even tolerate Birdy to begin with, and this wasn't making him like Birdy any better.

"What the heck is your problem? Earth is in danger of being taken over by Gruumm and you are far more concerned with rules!" Cruger exclaimed.

A weird smile appeared on Birdy's face. "Congratulations Cruger. You just got yourself fired. Now, not only will I be escorting Sky from Earth, but you are now unemployed," Birdy said harshly.

Cruger couldn't believe his ears. This wasn't the way he had envisioned this turning out at all.

"I suggest you pack your things. You have one hour to leave the Academy. If by that time, you have not left, I'll call security and have you escorted out," Birdy said.

XXXXXXXXXX

Syd had just got back into the Academy. She headed to her room to lie down, but to her surprise there was someone standing by the entrance to her room, Sky.

"Sky, what are you doing here?" Syd asked.

"I know about your abortion Syd," Sky stated.

Syd's heart skipped a beat. Sky was the last person she wanted to find out about her abortion. She couldn't even fathom how he was feeling right now.

"Look Sky, I know you are probably upset with me, but I had no choice. I'm not ready to be a mother. I'm not ready to go through the pains of labor. I can't have a baby, not this way," Syd said.

Sky's eyes were fixated on Syd's in an icy gaze.

"You know how I feel about abortion Syd. You also know why I feel that way, yet you still went out and had an abortion anyways?" Sky asked his voice getting louder with each and every word.

"Jack raped me Sky! I wouldn't be caught dead giving birth to a child that was a product of rape!" Syd exclaimed.

Anger and sadness fought for control within Sky. This was way too similar of a situation for him to not be perturbed by it.

"Jack made a mistake-"

"A mistake? Jack made a mistake? He didn't make a mistake Sky! He completely destroyed any and all trust I had in him!" Syd retorted.

"But he loves you," Sky finished.

Syd rolled her eyes in response. "You've got to be kidding me! When a guy loves a girl, he doesn't go and rape her just so he could father her child! I don't care if Jack loves me or not! I doubt he even does in the first place! The point is that I don't love him, nor could I ever love him after he did what he did to me!" Syd replied.

"You want me to stay on Earth right?" Sky asked.

Syd had a confused look on her face. "Of course I do Sky. I love you," Syd answered.

"So what you are saying is that you want me to get a second chance even though I made the mistake of endangering the lives of innocent civilians, but you aren't willing to give Jack a second chance?" Sky asked.

"Sky, those are two entirely different things," Syd commented.

Sky leaned back against the wall waiting for Syd to elaborate.

"Your mind was being controlled. Jack has no such excuse. He made a conscious decision to rape me, and now he has to deal with the consequences which are me having an abortion and me never giving the thought of him and me becoming a couple the slightest bit of consideration," Syd said.

"Okay Syd, what makes you think that I should give you a second chance?" Sky asked.

Syd looked puzzled by what Sky was saying.

"You say you love me, yet you went out and had an abortion just like my ex-wife did. Even though it wasn't my child, it still brought up old wounds. Furthermore, you talk about Jack destroying your trust in him, well you destroyed my trust in you. I used to see you as a person who would never do to me what my ex-wife did to me. Now, I see that isn't the case. I can't be with someone who has the capacity to go off and have an abortion behind my back," Sky explained.

Syd's eyes started to well up with tears. "Sky, you can't mean that. I'd never do that to you. I love you," Syd said with her voice cracking on the last three words.

Sky and Syd heard someone clear their throat. They looked to see who it was and saw that it was Birdy.

"Come on Sky, it's time to go," Birdy said.

XXXXXXXXXX

All the cadets and staff of S.P.D. Earth came to see Sky off. They hated to see him go, but they were powerless to do anything about it given that it was their Supreme Commander's decision.

"Are you sure you left your S.P.D. morpher and uniforms here? After all, you'll no longer need those," Birdy said.

"I did," Sky answered.

Chris and Simone were clinging to Sky's arms wondering what was going on. Birdy had allowed them to go with Sky even though they hadn't done anything wrong. It was obvious that the two children wanted to be with nobody but Sky.

"I'm really going to miss you Sky. Things won't be the same here without you. I'm never going to find another best friend like you. Who's going to be my roommate now? I don't want another roommate. I liked having you as a roommate," Bridge said.

Sky pulled Bridge in for a hug. The two best friends embraced each other uncertain about when they would be able to see each other again. As they parted, Sky noticed that Bridge's eyes had started to water.

"I'll miss you too Bridge," Sky said.

Z approached Sky next. "If someone were to ask me back when I first joined S.P.D. if I would miss having you around, I'd tell them no without a moment's hesitation. Now though, I can't imagine my life without you. I know you never thought you'd live to see the day that I said this, but I love you Sky," Z said giving Sky a goodbye kiss.

Kat stepped forward next. "It's been an honor and a privilege working with you Sky. You've grown into quite a remarkable young man. I have no doubt that your father would be proud of you. Take care of yourself," Kat said giving Sky a hug.

Boom was next to go. "I know you and I aren't exactly the best of friends Sky, but I'm going to miss having you around too. It sucks that Birdy is making you leave. I hope you won't forget us," Boom said shaking Sky's hand.

"I could never forget you guys," Sky replied.

Syd cautiously took a step towards Sky. "Sky, I know you are probably still mad at me, but I meant everything I said. I do love you. I would never have an abortion if you were the father of my child. Here you are leaving, and I just don't want this to be how things are left between us. You, Bridge, and I have been through so much together that I'd hate to see it end. I will miss you more than you will ever know Sky," Syd said embracing Sky in a hug.

"I'm not mad at you Syd. I'm not happy with your decision to have an abortion, but I'm not mad at you," Sky responded.

Just then, there was a sound of scurrying feet approaching. The rangers looked to see that it was Cruger running towards them.

"Sky, I'm glad I caught you. I'm so sorry that you still have to leave. I tried Sky. I really did. I even got fired in the process," Cruger said.

"You got fired?" Z, Bridge, Syd, and Sky asked in unison.

"Yes, but look I don't have time to talk much longer because Birdy's going to call security on me soon if I don't leave the Academy, just know that I am proud of you Sky. You'd visit the Academy back when your father was the red ranger, and because of that, I was able to watch you grow into a great ranger just like your father was. Take care of yourself," Cruger said.

"Alright, well we really must be going now, so come on Sky," Birdy said.

Sky noticed the sad looks on the faces of his former teammates. "Come on you guys, this isn't a funeral. It's not like I've died or anything. Just because I can't set foot on Earth anymore doesn't mean that you can't visit me. It's not the last time we'll see each other. I promise. When Jack wakes up, tell him bye for me," Sky said before entering the S.P.D. ship along with Birdy, Chris, and Simone.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Even without Sky, the rangers were able to defeat Gruumm. Chris and Simone started school and Sky raised them as a single parent. The rest of B-Squad came to see Sky whenever they had a vacation.

Jack left S.P.D. to work alongside a girl that he had met named Ally who was quickly becoming more than just a friend to him. Jack had given up on pursuing a relationship with Syd after she had continued to make it clear that nothing could ever happen between the two of them after what he had done to her.

Z and Syd both wanted to start a romantic relationship with Sky, but Sky insisted that their life was on Earth, and since he could no longer step foot in Earth, it wouldn't work out between them.

Kat assumed command of S.P.D. Earth station with Cruger being removed from command. She made a great commander. S.P.D. was in good hands under Kat's leadership.

Bridge, Z, and Syd all got promoted being the three remaining members of B-Squad. Kat had brought up the fact that they could be promoted to A-Squad, but they turned that offer down. B-Squad was who they were. Bridge became the red ranger. Z became the blue ranger. Syd was the new green ranger. The yellow and pink ranger spots were vacant on B-Squad. Life went on as normal, or at least as normal as things got at S.P.D.

**The End**

**I finally finished this. I hate writing the last chapter. It's by far the worst. You always wonder if you ended it appropriately or if you've accomplished everything you wanted to. I think it's even more difficult than the first chapter, but I digressed. I hope this chapter wasn't too bad. I now only have 3 "In-Progress" fics left. Thank you for reading this chapter and for that matter for reading this fic. Have comments? Tell me what they are in a review. This is the 4th fic I've finished, but it was the first fic I started. No flames please.**


End file.
